The Time War Saga
by Clendy82
Summary: Myths and whispers. Hints of a struggle that crossed space, time, and reality itself. Now at last the story can be told. Follow the Doctor on a journey spanning from the conflict's first drumbeats to an epic war that would change the universe forever.
1. Chapter 1

The radio clicked on. It was a commercial, advertising used cars that she's probably never afford, sold somewhere she would never visit. Some music would have been a decent way to start the day, but apparantly that was too much to ask for.

Cassie Jacobs (nobody ever called her Cassandra, except her mom) reached over from under the covers and groped at the tuner dial, hoping to come across something a bit more appealing. But, half-asleep and still under her blanket, the best she could do was some interesting static. Finally, she gave up, hit the off switch, and reluctantly sat up. She reached over from her bed and pulled open the blinds, but it was still dark outside, except for a purplish tinge on the horizon and the row of streetlights just outside her bedroom that, as always, caused her to squint while she threw off her blanket and stepped out of bed. The harsh amber light threw shadows everywhere, but they were enough to see by.

A loud thud came from the kitchen down the hall, followed by a pair of muffled voices shouting. Cassie sighed. That would be Dad and her younger brother Sammy (nobody ever called him Satoshi, except their mom) getting into an argument over his curfew last night. Sammy's school began a half hour before her's, so he was already up and about just in time to treat her to a shouting match first thing in the morning. The wall was thin enough between her room and his that she could tell whenever he was in there, and that didn't happen until just a few hours ago. Dad didn't lay down rules very often, and enforced them even less, but he did expect both his kids to be home before midnight. Cassie knew that midnight was pretty lenient compared to a lot of other curfews her friends had, but apparantly that wasn't enough for Sam. It was also his bad luck that Dad was awake to notice.

Cassie picked up her bathrobe and quickly crossed the hall into the bathroom. She turned on the shower first, both to give it a chance to warm up and to drown out her family's argument. She brushed her teeth until she felt heat coming from the tub, then swished water from the sink, stripped out of the panties and oversized nightshirt she wore to bed and stepped quickly into the stream.

The steaming water woke her up instantly, performing its daily miracle of breaking her morning trance. As always, she would have loved to linger. But she knew eventually her dad would be banging the door down, yelling at her to stop wasting hot water. Dad liked to call long showers "Hollywood showers"; some term from his Marine days, she guessed. And with Dad, you only got one warning. Sometime last year, she felt rebellious and didn't listen. He had burst into the bathroom, ripped open the curtains and turned off the water himself. Cassie thought maybe she could get away with it this morning with Sammy holding his attention, but didn't want to chance it, so she lathered, shampooed, and rinsed before hitting the faucet.

Cassie grabbed a towel and quickly dried off, finishing off the morning bathroom routine with some deodrant and quick hair brushing. Her black hair was short enough that she didn't need to spend more than a minute or two on it just to get out the tangles, and a single barette was enough to keep the bangs out of her face. She had some basic makeup in the drawer, but never bothered with it except on special occasions. Cassie thought she had a pretty enough face without looking like a clown, though she wished she could add a few inches onto her frame. Boys didn't seem to want to risk spine damage just to talk to her. Some boobs would be nice, too, if just to give her bras something to do other than keep her chest warm.

Despite herself, Cassie thought about putting some makeup on this morning, just to delay the inevitable. But the argument outside didn't seem to be dying down any, so she finished towelling her hair to an acceptable dampness, slipped into her bathrobe, sighed, and headed for the kitchen.

Of course, Dad and Sammy were still going at it. Sammy was thirteen, a few years younger than Cassie, but was already a few inches taller than her. He shared her slight build and straight black hair, though, traits they both inherited from their mother. Yumi was a Japanese native who had moved to America after marrying Kyle Jacobs, Cassie's and Sammy's father, who had been a Marine stationed in Japan. They had made an interesting picture standing side by side. Kyle had towered over his wife by almost a foot and was very solidly built compared to her almost elven frame. Kyle had always been very loud and boisterous, while Cassie could never remember her mother raising her voice even once.

It had been over three years since Yumi died. Cassie had stayed home to watch Sammy while her parents had a rare night out together. A drunk driver had ran a red light and sideswiped their car. Yumi was killed instantly, and the wreckage had crippled Kyle's leg beyond repair. Cassie could see the pronounced limp as he rounded the kitchen table intent on her brother.

"I was just out with my friends, Dad. I don't see what the big deal is," Sammy said.

"The big deal is that you were out past curfew. Not only that, still won't tell me where you were!" Kyle yelled back.

"I told you, we were hanging out at Josh's playing video games. I lost track of time, I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it here. You came in over two hours past your curfew. That's a lot more than 'losing track of time'."

Cassie went unnoticed to the cupboard and snagged a package of pop tarts. She set them in the toaster and poured herself a glass of water, sitting down at the kitchen table while she waited.

"If Cassie had stayed out, you wouldn't be yelling at her this much!" Sammy protested.

"Your sister doesn't stay out until two in the morning! And if she did, she probably wouldn't be at 'Josh's', doing god knows what and not telling me," Kyle replied. He looked up at the clock above the sink. "Get your ass to school. We'll talk about this when I get home."

"Fine!" Sammy grabbed his backpack and stormed out the front door, letting it slam behind him.

Kyle groaned at the noise, rubbing his head. He cracked half an icecube tray into a glass before filling it from the sink. He was already dressed for work in well-worn jeans and a flannel shirt. His latest job was working in freeway construction. His leg didn't let him have a shot at the higher-paying building work he wanted, but freeway repair was steady work, he had told her. He slouched into a chair opposite her.

"I don't know what to do about your brother," he said. "For damn sure you weren't as much of a handful at his age."

"I'm sure he'll come around," she said, not quite sure how to reply. Cassie didn't like it when Dad tried to have conversations about her brother's behavior. Ever since Mom died, she'd tried to help out more with chores and that sort of thing, but she didn't know how to fill in for Mom at parent stuff. She hated it when Dad thought she did.

Kyle smiled a little at that. "Yeah, well, at least I don't have to worry about you, right?" He stood up and rubbed her knee with his hand, leaning in to kiss her. She could still smell the alcohol on his breath but returned his kiss anyway, pulling her head back before it could linger. The pop tarts jumped out of the toaster with a loud ping.

Kyle glanced over at the toaster before turning back. "Well, I've gotta get going to work. See you when I get home, okay?" He leaned in and kissed Cassie again on the forehead before he grabbed his keys and headed out the door. Cassie waited until he was gone to stand up and pull her bathrobe tighter around herself. She put the pop tarts on a plate and carried them to her room.

Cassie pulled open her closet and started rummaging through her hangers. She'd never paid too much attention to fashion, and her dad's salary was spent on other necessities besides a teenage girl's wardrobe, but nonetheless, Cassie sometimes wished she had a bit more variety to choose from. As it was, there were only a few pairs of pants and shorts, a handful of shirts, and several other odds and ends that still left more than half the hanger rod bare. Most of her favorite outfits had come from the discounted vintage-and-therefore-cool shelves of secondhand stores. Mouth full of cherry pastry, she pulled out a pair of black pants and a plain black t-shirt to go with a green-and-black tartan flannel overshirt. She tucked both shirts down her waistband and unbuttoned the flannel halfway down her chest. The jeans were snug enough that she didn't add a belt. Finally, she grabbed her silver bracelet, a series of tiny chain links with an engraved nameplate dangling off the end, from her nightstand and pulled it on. It had been a gift from her mom on her twelfth birthday, her last before she had died, and she never left the house without it.

She doublechecked herself in the bathroom mirror, washing off her face where her dad had kissed her goodbye. She tugged down on her shirt, trying to get her chest to stick out more, but with little result. Boobs would be a hassle, sure, but Kendra had guys following her everywhere while she, the titless pixie, was mostly ignored, so it couldn't hurt. Exasperated, she grabbed her bookbag, pulled on her shoes and jacket, and headed out the door.

*** * ***

The sun was just starting to break out over the buildings when Cassie locked the door behind her. She turned and headed down the sidewalk as she zipped up her jacket all the way to keep out the chill morning air.

Her family's house was in an older neighborhood, filled with a scattered mix of older homes, townhouses, and apartment buildings. There was no fence and certainly no yard; the front door was just a few feet in from the sidewalk. Her dad's car was usually parked along the road out front, safe only because it was so worn down that nobody would want to steal it. There was a school bus pickup, along with a regular metro stop, about a block away, but Cassie almost never used either one in the mornings. They both ran long routes before making a dropoff just before class started and she liked to get there early. The school itself was only about ten blocks away; a decent walk, but one she usually didn't mind making.

Almost immediately, the small street of houses turned into apartments, with shops lining the street level floors. There were only a few people out this early, and they paid her no heed as she made her way past them.

The faded blaring of something harsh and distorted that could barely be called music brought her up short. Damnit. They weren't the type to wake up early, so she guessed they must have been up all night and were still going strong. They never did anything too serious, but she never liked dealing with them. A few times when she had had to walk past them, they had up and followed her for blocks like a pack of hyenas. They never touched her, but they laughed and harrassed all the same. She knew better than to snap back or even acknowledge them. It was just the kind of bait they would jump on.

At the next intersection, she crossed to the other side of the road, pulling the collar on her jacket up above her neck and continued on. A minute later, they came into view: About a half dozen guys, all probably in their twenties with colorful sports jackets and flashy jewelry like they were important or something, probably talking about DJ BooDiddy or whatever. They were all gathered around an older car parked along the sidewalk. Cassie knew that it belonged to one of them: A shiny red Corvette with a booming stereo and purring engine that probably impressed a lot of girls if they didn't know how he got it.

Cassie could probably guess how he got it.

She kept her head down as she walked, figuring if she were lucky they wouldn't notice. No such luck. One man, with a white windbreaker and three-day growth of beard, caught sight of her. "Hey, babe, what don't you come here for a bit!" he called out to her while she kept walking, not even breaking stride. He moved around the car, calling out again. For a second, she thought he would try and cross the street, but she had already moved past them and was almost to the next intersection when he stopped after a few steps and turned back, already bored with the game.

Cassie exhaled the breath she'd been holding, crossing with the light onto the next block. About ten minutes later, she made it to her school. Like most city schools, it was a brick building, tall and narrow to make the best use of the real estate. A large stoop led up from the sidewalk to the main entrance. In the next lot over, a couple basketball courts were fenced in to help support overflow gym classes. It was still early, so there were only a few students and faculty trickling in.

Her first visit was to her locker, retrieving a large stack of textbooks and sliding them into a backpack she kept there. She then made her way to the cafeteria. A few small groups of students had already gathered there, killing time until classes began. Cassie's stomach grumbled slightly at the scent of rubbery eggs and singed toast, but she ignored it, dropping her bag onto a table and pulling out her math book. Even though she'd already gotten it done in class yesterday, she still liked to double-check it just in case.

She had made it halfway through the assignment before she heard the unbearably cheery voice calling to her.

"Cassie! Hey, Cass!"

A blonde girl dropped her bag next to Cassie's, stooping down to hug her across the chest from behind. Cassie lifted a hand to rub her arm in response. The girl let go after a moment, then plopped down in the seat next to Cassie. She looked at the scattered homework with a disapproving air.

"I don't get why you always do those things twice. It's not like you're not gonna ace it like always."

Cassie smiled. "I don't always ace them, Kendra. Just most of the time. I've got to do something in class besides give blowjobs in the corner," she said.

"Geez, it was just that one time. Give me a break!" Kendra replied, playing along. "Besides, it was science class. Those lab coats help hide the stains."

"And what did Mr. Hopkins say when he caught you?"

Kendra laughed. "What makes you think it wasn't him I was giving it to?" she said in a sultry voice.

Cassie shook her head, groaning in good-natured disgust. Ever since fifth grade, when the teachers had taught them what was what between boys and girls, Kendra had been trying to gross her out with details like that. The fact that they had grown up together since they were little was probably the only reason they were best friends. Nowadays, their social lives could not have been more different. Whereas Cassie was quiet and reserved around people, Kendra Madison was a social butterfly, flighting from person to person. That, and her fondness for kissing and hugging close friends and complete strangers alike, had given her something of a bad reputation with the guys in their school who thought of her as an easy lay. Kendra didn't seem to mind. Her open and cheerful nature might have lured some guys into thinking she was easy, but there was a strict line between what she was and was not willing to do. The last guy that forgot that had ended up with a swift kick to the groin.

Kendra took Cassie's hand in hers, leaning in close like she was sharing a secret. "Besides, Mr. Mayfair isn't even here today."

"So you got a substitute?" Cassie asked.

"Oh, yeah. A sexy one, too. I saw him heading into the teacher's lounge earlier. We'll probably end up watching some Discovery Channel video or something," Kendra said, rolling her eyes. Not many people would have guessed, but Cassie knew that Kendra genuinely enjoyed her science classes, being able to move around, add A to B and make things happen. Most people would have been happy with the impromptu vacation day, but Kendra thought that sitting still watching TV was boring. "What about you?" she continued. "Any new men in your life?"

"Oh, yeah," Cassie replied, deadpan. "Older guy, kind of a beard thing going on, likes it when I call him daddy."

"Ouch," Kendra winced. "What happened this time?"

"Sammy wasn't back by curfew and Dad caught him. They spent most of the morning yelling."

"Don't worry about it. Sammy's just a kid. He'll grow out of it." Kendra grinned. "I can help him out with that, if you want."

Cassie laughed despite herself. "Kendra! He's my brother! I don't wanna think about that, that's just- eww!"

"Sure, he's your brother, but he's not mine. Nobody said you had to watch." Kendra grinned, like a cat about to finish off an unsuspecting mouse. "Unless you want to."

"Oh, that's just gross!" Cassie exclaimed, thoroughly disgusted and defeated. Just then, the bell rang, signaling ten minutes until the first class period. 'Saved by the bell' had never sounded more appropriate to Cassie as she started shoving books and papers into her pack.

"All right, I guess I'll let you off the hook," Kendra said. "See you at lunch, okay?"

"Okay," Cassie replied.

"Great. See you later." Before Cassie could react, Kendra leaned in and planted a quick kiss on her lips before heading off to the class, waving at the cheering and whistling group of guys at the next table as Cassie's cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. She finished gathering her things and was on her way before they could start cheering her next. Attention like that Cassie could do without.

*** * ***

Cassie's first period was AP Calculus. She took her favorite seat in the front row off to the side, both so she could see everything written on the whiteboard and so she could be out of the line of sight of everyone behind her. Almost all the other students were seniors, two or three juniors who'd managed to make the cut into the advanced course, and Cassie, the lone sophomore. The bell rang again soon after she took her seat and the class settled into their desks to begin the lesson.

Dr. Carmichael was the only teacher on the faculty to have an actual doctorate in his subject. He was an older man, tall and broad-shouldered. He occasionally told his classes that he had been a quarterback for Syracuse and had been offered a shot at the NFL, which he turned down to teach math. He said that the secret to throwing a football lie in precisely measured angles, force, and momentum, all of which he conveniently taught in his class. Most students jeered at the exaggerations, but they always paid a little bit more attention when he used football examples to explain his coursework.

With an enthusiasm totally inappropriate for such an early hour, Dr. Carmichael greeted everyone and launched right into things, leaving everyone else scrambling to catch up. Within minutes, most of the class was scratching charts and formulae into their notebooks almost as fast as the instructor could throw them onto the board. Everytime he paused for breath, a dozen hands flew into the air with questions, which Dr. Carmichael answered with gusto and in detail. When the bell rang, everyone gathered up their pages full of notes and staggered out of the room, massaging the feeling back into their writing hands. Most students didn't care for the reams of homework and extra studying required to get a decent grade in the class, but Dr. Carmichael was Cassie's favorite teacher. Math was one of her least favorite subjects, but she needed to take it if she wanted to get her advance college credits. She planned to eventually go to medical school and didn't see where calculus would ever come into play as a doctor, but she loved the man for at least making it seem interesting enough to not zone out in the middle of class.

Two more classes followed: Civics and English, both advanced placement courses where she was again the youngest student there. Compared to math, these were much more to Cassie's liking as they allowed for more expression and creativity. Civics, in particular had a discussion on the difference between ideal and realistic ethics in government that caught Cassie's interest.

The last class before lunch was physical education, which Cassie didn't much care for. She didn't have anything against exercise, but her height usually meant that she was at a disadvantage for almost every sport they played. After getting changed and assembled in the gym, the teacher had the class running back and forth across the court. The school did have a small track and field area that it shared with the district, but it was several blocks away and was mainly used for sports practice, which was just fine with Cassie, since everyone didn't have to see how far he lagged behind. After a decent warmup, the instructor told them to break into two teams for dodgeball, which got a cheer from the class.

Lining up against the baseline, Cassie felt someone touch her shoulder. It was Zach Franklin, a junior who was the school's running back whom Cassie only saw this period.

"How's it going?" he asked, smiling at her.

"Umm, okay I guess," Cassie replied awkwardly.

"Cool. Listen, are you doing anything tonight?"

"Probably just schoolwork. Why?"

Zach shrugged, tugging down on the bandana he was wearing. "Well, my older brother Steve was having a party later on and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

Cassie was stunned. These were more words than he had ever spoke to her and now he was asking her out? Zach, a not-bad-looking-but-typical jock who could have any number of typical bimbos, wanted to ask her out? Insane.

"Why ask me?" she finally replied.

Zach shrugged again. "I dunno. You seem like a nice chick, so I thought I'd see if you'd wanna spend some time together."

The whistle blew, and Cassie picked up the rubber ball at her feet. "I don't know. Parties aren't really my-"

"Hold that thought," Zach cut in, stepping into her and knocking away the ball aimed straight at her chest. His shoulder nudged her and she lost her balance, slipping to the floor.

"Sorry about that," Zach said, holding out a hand. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, thanks," Cassie replied, taking his hand and letting him pull her to her feet. "My butt broke my fall."

"At least you landed on something soft," Zach laughed. His bandana had come loose bending over, uncovering his brow. He reached up to tug it back into place when Cassie pointed.

"Are you okay?" she asked, looking at the black mark on Zach's forehead.

Zach paused for a split second before pulling the bandana over the mark. "It's fine. Just a bruise from practice. So can you make it?" he asked again, looking down at her.

Cassie hesitated, fighting back the goofy smile that threatened to engulf her face. She wasn't really a big party-goer. Most nights she just stayed home and did her homework. Still, she thought while looking back at him, how many parties had she actually been invited to that she didn't just support the wall? And he was pretty cute, if you were into the whole muscles-and-hair kind of thing. And he did have really nice eyes . . . oh, what the hell?

"Yeah, sure I'll come," Cassie finally answered, lips twitching.

His face broke into a broad grin. "Great. I'll give you the address later."

"Hey, lovebirds!" one of their teammates shouted back at them. "Are you guys playing or not?"

"Oh...right. Sorry," Cassie called back, hefting her ball and leaping into the fray.

It wasn't until class was over and she was in the locker room shower that she thought back on what just happened. Why did Zach ask her out? Because she was nice? Yeah, right. She knew that guys like him equated 'nice' with 'legs firmly shut' and therefore not worth the trouble. She thought back to his face when he asked her. He certainly seemed sincere, but she was sure a lot of guys did until they had their fun and never called back. So why did she say yes? Sure, he was good looking, but so were lots of other people and her stomach never twisted in knots for any of them. It didn't make any sense.

She cranked the water all the way to cold, hoping the icy stream would knock something loose. She tried to think of it objectively, weighing pros and cons, but all she could see when she thought of him were his smile and his eyes and how good it felt when he looked at her. Finally, she dragged herself away from the shower and got dressed. It was time for lunch and she was supposed to meet Kendra there. The thought of Kendra made her feel better. Kendra would know what to make of this.

*** * ***

The cafeteria was mostly full by the time Cassie made it there. Kendra was at her usual table, talking with a large group of her friends. There were only a few people in line at the service counter, but Cassie didn't spare it a second glance. She made straight for Kendra's table, stepping behind her and bending down close to her ear.

"Can I talk to you?" she asked quietly.

Kendra turned her head to face her. "Oh, hey Cass. What's up?"

Cassie shook her head slightly, motioning toward an empty corner of the room. Kendra opened her mouth to speak, but, seeing the look on Cassie's face, she turned back, excused herself, and followed Cassie to the corner.

"What is it, Cass? You feeling okay?" Kendra asked, concern replacing her usual zeal.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Cassie replied hurriedly. "It's just...I need some help."

She went on to explain what had happened in gym last period. How Zach Franklin, popular athlete, had asked her out out of the blue and (more importantly) how she had said yes when her default mode for romance was 'run like hell'.

"I just don't get it," Cassie went on. "I mean, yeah, he's good looking, but he's not _that_ good looking, and I just...I just don't get it."

Kendra's face was a mix of shock, confusion, and barely-contained glee. "So let me get this straight. Zach Franklin, _the_ Zach Franklin, asked you out?"

"Didn't I just say that?" Cassie shot back.

"Sorry, sorry," Kendra replied, hands raised, pleading for patience. "I just mean, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal? The big deal is that he's never even talked to me before and now he wants me to go to some party at his brother's place and I just went along with it."

"His brother's place? He wants to go with you to that party?" Kendra asked, a smile growing on her face. "Then I'll just come with you."

"What do you mean, come with me?"

"Yeah, lots of people are gonna be there. I guess his brother just got back from some college trip overseas somewhere, so they're celebrating. If you're that worried about it, I'll keep an eye out and make sure he keeps his hands to himself while you're over there. He tries anything you don't like, I'll tell everyone about his herpes outbreak."

Cassie blinked. "What herpes outbreak?"

"The one I just made up but nobody'll believe he doesn't have once I mention it."

Cassie threw her arms around Kendra's neck and pulled her close. "That's absolutely disgusting but you are such a lifesaver. Thank you so much," she whispered.

Kendra rubbed Cassie's back. "That's what best friends are for." She paused. "On the other hand, maybe I should worry about _you_ keeping your hands to yourself when you get there."

Cassie's hand reached down and pinched Kendra's side hard. Kendra laughed and let go of Cassie, pulling away laughing. Cassie punched her hard in the arm.

"You are such a bitch," Cassie said loudly, laughing despite herself.

"I know. That's why you love me," Kendra replied, rubbing her arm. "That hurt."

"It's your own fault."

"It still hurts, though. You got anything for lunch yet?"

Cassie shook her head. Dad only gave her money for lunch once or twice a week unless he was working. And even with his new job they still had bills to catch up on for awhile yet.

Kendra nodded in understanding. "Come on," she said, putting an arm around Cassie's shoulder and steering her back to her table. "Mom always packs mine like she wants to fatten me up or something. You can have part of my sandwich if you want."

Cassie knew that Kendra's lunch was nowhere near too big for her. Her mom always packed the same thing: One sandwich (more often than not roast beef), a few pieces of celery, a banana (usually used as a suggestive prop at the lunch table before being eaten), a thermos of fruit juice, and a cookie, seemingly included only as a concession to human frailty.

They sat down at the table. Kendra nudged half the sandwich toward Cassie, who hesitated only a second before digging in.

"I take back half the bad things I've said about you today," Cassie said between bites.

"You're too kind," Kendra replied sardonically. "So do you wanna spend the night after the party? I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind."

Cassie swallowed her last bite of sandwich and thought about it. It would probably be hard to even ask permission from her dad, given the condition he was likely to be in by the time she got home. Still, it wasn't that hard of a choice. She could just leave him a note. "Yeah, sure."

"Cool. So I'll meet you after class, we can stop by your house so you can change and then we can go to the party together. Sound okay?" Kendra asked.

"Sounds okay with me." Cassie thought for a moment. "But what about you? Don't you need to change into something?"

Kendra waved a hand vaguely in front of herself, encompassing a tight, red, v-necked sweater and purple button-up blouse underneath, sandals with straps reaching halfway up her calves, and a pleated skirt reaching just high enough to catch the eyes of any boys watching without being too inappropriate to the teachers. "Why? Do you think I should go for something a little more daring?" she asked innocently.

Figures. "Never mind. Do you still have that science class to go to?"

Kendra nodded. "Yeah. Last period. Maybe I'll take a nap while he plays The Wonderful World of Bees or something," she said, rolling her eyes while picking up her bookbag.

"Just don't drool too much, it'll smear your makeup."

"And don't you drool too much while you're thinking of super sexy Zach Franklin," Kendra teased, scampering away before Cassie could reply. Or hit her, whichever came first.

Retrieving her own backpack, Cassie headed off to her own classes. The last two courses of the day were pretty typical, without too much homework to deal with. Cassie marked down her assignments in her notebook, figuring that it would take an hour or two, tops, to finish up all her class's assignments, something she could safely put off until Saturday after the party. With that in mind, she headed downstairs toward the science wing to meet up with Kendra.

Most of the class was already gone by the time she got there. Cassie saw a few students, followed by Kendra herself, exit the room, all looking glassy-eyed and dazed as if they had just survived some horrible disaster.

"Kendra? Are you okay?" Cassie asked. Her best friend didn't seem to hear her. Cassie put a hand on her shoulder and shook her gently. Kendra started, then turned to face her as if she hadn't noticed her presence before.

"Are you okay?" Cassie repeated.

"What? Yeah, I'm just..." Kendra trailed off, shaking her head. "It was just a really intense class, that's all."

Cassie looked dubious. "But it was just a substitute, wasn't it? How bad could it have been?"

"No, no, it wasn't bad, really. Just...different, for some reason. Since it wasn't a regular class, he said he'd cover some really advanced stuff just for fun and there was just something about the way he talked. I could really see what he was talking about. I could understand it." She smiled. "It felt amazing."

Cassie was still doubtful. "Kendra. It was physics, not sex. Okay?"

"It sure felt like it, though," Kendra replied. Cassie took this to mean that she was mostly back to normal. She took a glance behind Kendra into the classroom to see what the big deal was.

There was still a few people in their seats, scribbling down notes at a feverish pace as if they'd forget what they were writing at any moment. There wasn't any lab equipment being used. The teacher had his back to her, erasing a board full of complicated formulae. He didn't look that unusual. He was tall, around six feet or so, and slim. He had long hair compared to most other instructors she's seen, auburn brown and curly, touching the shoulders and the nape of his neck. His outfit was a bit unusual, though. He was wearing ash-grey slacks and a long-sleeved white shirt, along with a gold-embroidered double-breasted waistcoat and an old-fashioned bronze ascot. All together, Cassie thought the outfit made him look like a wealthy oil tycoon from the old west. Not a bad looking guy, though, she supposed. That would explain why Kendra would have hung on every word he said.

The teacher finished wiping down the board. He turned and gathered up a sheaf of papers sitting at his desk, sweeping them into a small briefcase.

"All right, children, time to go," he called out to the lingering students. "I'm sure you all have place to be and things to do. Class will still be here on Monday, I promise you." His voice was deeper than Cassie would have guessed, and had an accent that she couldn't quite guess at.

He looked up and saw Cassie looking at him. "Something I can help you with, miss?" he asked.

Cassie started, embarrassed at being caught staring. "Um, no thank you, sir. I was just meeting my friend," she answered, waving toward Kendra.

He smiled at Cassie. "Ah, splendid. Having good friends is very important in a young woman's life. I hope that you keep each other out of too much trouble?"

His manner of speech was so verbose and over the top that Cassie couldn't help but smile back. "I try, but it doesn't always turn out that way."

Cassie might have expected some disapproval, but if anything his smile grew wider. "I suppose not, but a little trouble now and then does you good as long as you keep it managed." He closed up the briefcase and began walking toward her, shooing out the last couple students before him.

"Tell me, what's your name, miss?" he asked, locking the door to the classroom behind him.

"Um, Cassandra. Cassandra Jacobs," she replied, somewhat taken aback. "But my friends call me Cassie."

"A pleasure to meet you, Cassie," he said, taking her hand in a firm handshake. "And you too, Kendra. I must say you did very well in class today."

Cassie had almost forgotten Kendra standing right next to her. "Thank you," Kendra replied, sounding embarrassed, an emotion Cassie had rarely seen from her.

The three of them began walking toward the main entrance.

"Are you taking any science courses, Cassie? I think I'd remember if you were in any of my lessons."

"Not this semester, no. I was planning on squeezing it in next term. Will you still be here?" she asked, her face flushing even as she asked the question but unable to pull it back.

He laughed good-naturedly. "Oh my goodness, no. I'm just filling in for a few days while Mr. Mayfair is away."

"Where is Mr. Mayfair, anyway?" Kendra asked. "Is he sick?"

"Oh, no, nothing like that. He actually picked up a tidy sum off a lottery ticket and decided to take a vacation for a few days."

"He won the lottery?" Cassie exclaimed.

"Well, not the grand prize, but enough to tempt him to the tropics for a holiday, it seems," he replied, nodding sagely.

The halls were mostly cleared of students eager to get home. The teacher reached the door first and held it open for the two girls. A cold breeze swept inside, causing Cassie and Kendra to zip up their jackets a bit more before stepping outside. Kendra grumbled, tugging at her skirt to cover more of her exposed legs to no avail. Cassie smirked at her after making sure she was looking.

"Well, ladies. It seems this is where we part ways for now. Don't get into too much trouble," he said.

"We'll try not to," Cassie replied.

Another breeze swept past them, kicking up a few fallen leaves around the stairs of the building. The teacher paused, sniffing deeply, frowning as if there were something in the air he didn't like. He looked down at Cassie and leaned in slightly, sniffing again. The frown grew deeper.

Cassie shrunk back slightly. "Is there something wrong?" she asked. She also breathed in but couldn't detect anything out of the ordinary.

The teacher's face faded back into a smile. It seemed forced to Cassie's eyes. "No, everything's fine." He reached out and put a hand on Cassie's shoulder, leaning in close until all she could see were his piercing blue eyes. "Now remember what I said," he almost whispered. "Stay out of trouble. Keep your eyes open and use your head and everything will work out just fine."

"What are you talking about?" Cassie asked in a small voice.

The teacher stood up. "Nothing to worry yourselves about," he said, again boisterous and energetic. He put a hand on the two girls' backs and ushered them down the steps. "Now go on and do whatever it is girls your age do on the weekend." He picked up his briefcase and began walking down the sidewalk.

He had taken only a few steps when Cassie suddenly called out. "What's your name?"

The teacher stopped. "My name?"

"Yes, sir. I don't think you ever said."

"Hmm. I suppose I didn't." He pondered this for a few moments before resuming his walk up the road.

"Sir?"

He stopped again. "Yes?"

"Your name?"

"Oh, yes." He turned to face them, an odd grin on his face. "Well, when I wrote my name on the board today, it was Dr. Bowman, isn't that right, Kendra?"

"Yes, sir, it was," Kendra replied.

"Well, there you go," Dr. Bowman replied to Cassie.

"Dr. Bowman?" Cassie repeated.

"That's what I answer to, yes."

Cassie blinked at the strange evasiveness. "But is that your name?"

Dr. Bowman's smile grew wider. "Very good," he told her sincerely, his voice laced with amusement. "Now, I really must be going. Enjoy your weekend, ladies."

He turned and again began walking, waving as he left.

Cassie and Kendra watched him recede into the distance for awhile before turning to face each other. Several moments passed before either spoke.

"He's cute," Kendra announced.

"He's nice," Cassie allowed.

They looked up the sidewalk again. Then back at each other.

"He's weird," they both said in unison.

*** * ***

**Author's Notes: Welcome, one and all, to the first chapters of the Time War Saga. Like a lot of people, I enjoy going onto FF. Net and seeing what the amateur writing community has to offer. When I started looking more in depth, though, I noticed that a majority of the stories featured here mainly deal with the Ninth and Tenth Doctors from the new series. Not to mention an extreme amount of shipping and multi-Doctor fics, but those are just pet peeves of mine. Anyway, I started thinking about how I could contribute and fill in some of the blanks from the Eighth Doctor's history. Almost every story I've seen on here having to do with the Time War has only dealt with the aftermath; as far as I know, nobody's ever done a really in-depth story of what supposedly happened.**

**You'll notice the conspicuous lack of Daleks or other beasties in the first several chapters. As I'm writing this, my goal is to write a story that can be accessable to somebody who's never seen the series and has no background information on it at all. Many stories I've read start out with something like, "The Doctor does something to the Daleks from inside the TARDIS", putting out all these proper names in the first few sentences. What if I didn't know a thing about Doctor Who? What's a TARDIS? What is this guy talking about? If I didn't get an explanation, I might miss out on a great story because of Continuity Lockout. **

**Think of these first chapters as a prologue as we introduce the characters and get things up to speed. Hopefully you enjoy the ride.**

**Warning: The next chapter features some rather risque content that some viewers might find objectionable. I went out of my way to avoid putting down anything explicit or offensive while still getting the point across. It's mostly told from a limited perspective and should still fit inside a "T" rating, but somebody already pointed it out to me so I felt it fair to warn the readers ahead of time.**


	2. Chapter 2

By the time they turned to leave, the buses were already long gone. It would be a long wait before the next city bus would be around heading in that direction, so Cassie and Kendra decided to just walk back to her house rather than sit and wait. Kendra was glad to be moving, as the walking at least kept her somewhat warm. Her goose-down jacket was certainly warm enough, but her exposed legs left her in a state of abject misery. Despite the temptation, Cassie held off from poking fun at her friend. She herself had been caught in the cold enough times to think better of any teasing.

"This sucks," Kendra said, teeth chattering.

"Don't worry," Cassie replied. "It's only a few more blocks."

"Next time I decide to wear a skirt in winter, slap me." Cassie only smiled in reply.

Her smile faded when they crossed onto the next block and she saw that shiny red Corvette still parked where it had been that morning. She was just about to tell Kendra so they could cross the street opposite when she saw something else that froze her in her tracks.

"What is it?" Kendra asked.

"It's Sammy," Cassie replied, pointing.

Kendra's gaze followed toward where she was pointing until she saw him. Standing a few feet from the corvette, wearing a leather jacket he couldn't possibly afford, talking and laughing in a group of a half dozen men easily five or more years his senior.

"What's he doing hanging out with them?" Kendra asked quietly.

Cassie shook her head. "I don't know."

"Let's just go," Kendra said, a hint of worry in her voice. She tugged down again on her skirt. "We can figure it out after he comes back home."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Cassie reluctantly agreed. The pair moved again to cross the intersection when Cassie, out of the corner of her eye, saw Sammy raise a white joint to his mouth and inhale. He coughed slightly, smiling, as the other men around him cheered, slapping him on the back.

Not even really aware of having made the choice, Cassie crossed back to the other side of the block and was walking quickly toward the group.

"Cass?" Kendra called out. "Cassie?" She lingered a few moments before following, staying a few steps behind.

Cassie didn't even break stride, shouldering her way past a man easily a foot taller than she and walking straight up to Sammy. Ignoring his shocked protests, she grabbed the front of his shirt and dragged him down the alley. They moved past a dumpster and a wooden phone booth before she stopped and shoved him against the brick wall.

"What do you think you're doing?" Cassie demanded.

"It's- none of your business," Sammy replied, stammering.

"The hell it's not! What do you think Dad would say if he saw this?"

"Like I care what he thinks! He's probably had a dozen beers by now," Sammy shouted. He lifted the smoldering joint, still in his hand, to his lips. Cassie slapped it out of his hand.

"Fine. You don't care what Dad thinks. But what do you think Mom would say?"

Sammy grew very still. "Mom's gone, Cass."

"_Doko ni zan'nen desu, Satoshi_!" Cassie shouted. "_Okasan wa osoraku tengoku ni suru yo ni fumeiyo na kodo wo mi te nai te iru_!"

"_Mama wa shin de iru_!" Sammy shouted back. "_Naze kanojo wa ima nani wo kangae te iru mondai desu ka_?"

Cassie slapped him hard across the face. There was a long silence as Sammy lifted a hand to his face, rubbing his cheek as his expression moved from surprise to anger. "Get out of my way," he said finally. He grabbed her by the shoulder and pushed her aside as he moved to rejoin his new friends. Cassie didn't try to stop him. The group, apparantly bored now that the drama of the sibling fight had subsided, collected Sammy and they all began walking down the sidewalk toward who-knows-where. Sammy didn't once look back.

"Are you okay?" Kendra asked, rejoining Cassie in the alleyway.

Cassie sniffed, wiping budding tears from her eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. It's just...I've never seen him like that before."

"I know," Kendra said sympathically. "He's a good guy, I'm sure he'll come around."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Cassie replied, still looking down the empty alley.

Kendra clapped her on the back. "Come on," she said brightly. "We still have a party to get to, don't we?"

Cassie smiled a little, letting Kendra guide her out of the alley and back onto the sidewalk towards home.

*** * ***

It wasn't that much longer before the pair finally made it back to Cassie's house. Her dad was already home, Cassie could see. His truck, spattered with dents and rust, was parked crookedly on the curb in front of the front door. The sun was already starting to go down, but Cassie didn't see any lights turned on inside. But when she walked up the stairs to the door, she saw the television's flickering lights through the side window. She peeked through the window and saw her dad in the recliner. Shifting colors reflected off several empty bottles on the end table beside him.

Cassie turned to Kendra, putting a finger to her lips while she fished her keys from her pocket. Kendra nodded, and Cassie slowly turned both keys, first in the deadbolt, and then in the knob itself. She turned the knob and slowly opened the door, ushering Kendra inside before slipping in herself and gently closing it behind her. Cassie thought that she need not have bothered. The tv was showing blaring replays on the sports channel, while Kyle himself was sunk deep in his chair, snoring loudly.

They both headed down the hall and into Cassie's room. Cassie closed the door and turned on the lights while Kendra flopped onto the bed. Cassie turned to look at her.

"Comfy?" she asked.

"Very," Kendra replied brightly, taking hold of a pillow and hugging it to her chest like a favorite stuffed animal.

Cassie unclipped the barette from her hair and swept the stray bangs out of her eyes. "So what time is the party supposed to start, anyway? I don't think Zach ever said."

"From what I heard, his brother's been home all day with friends of his, so there are people there already, but they aren't really expecting a big crowd for another hour or two, so we've got time."

Cassie leaned her schoolbag against the wall next to Kendra's. "Time for what?"

"To get you ready, remember? My best friend's having her first big party; she should be looking special."

"Special how?" Cassie asked dubiously.

Kendra stood up from the bed and directed Cassie to the mirror hanging by her closet. "Think of it like getting ready for the ball. Your prince is waiting. I'm your much younger, much hotter fairy godmother and you're my poor homely Cinderella."

"Gee, thanks," Cassie muttered.

"Don't worry about it. By the time I'm done, you'll be turning heads the minute you walk through the door."

"I can't wait," she said flatly. Cassie had long past having second thoughts about going. She was past third, fourth, and fifth thoughts. But every time she thought about backing out, Zach's face floated into her mind, smiling at her with those piercing eyes, and her hesitation melted.

Kendra threw open the closet and started sorting through Cassie's wardrobe. With practiced ease, she whipped hangers of shirts and blouses from the rod and held each one against Cassie's front, judging the effects of color and texture. Several times she took two or three, holding one out in front while draping others around Cassie's neck to judge different layers, mixing and matching to see what would work best. She settled on a half dozen "finalists" for Cassie to try on. While she did so, Kendra rummaged through the closet for other articles, stopping only to evaluate her selections and suggest different combinations. After a few minutes, she decided that the black pants Cassie already had on would work just fine. Cassie, pliant as a barbie doll, pulled clothes on and off until she felt dizzy. Kendra carefully inspected a soft black tanktop and pale pink button-up shirt for long moments before reaching out and undoing herself all the buttons that Cassie had done. She tugged the tails of the pink shirt out from under Cassie's waistband and tied the two front ends in a knot across her midsection. Kendra stepped back, regarded Cassie for a moment, and stepped in again, this time undoing the buttons on the long sleeves and rolling them up halfway Cassie's forearms. She stepped back again and regarded Cassie, this time smiling with approval.

Kendra returned to the closet, returning moments later with the only three belts Cassie owned. She decided on a white one with gold clasp that she said would help set off the pink overshirt. Cassie asked if she really had to wear the shirt tied up like it was. Kendra replied that Cassie wasn't exactly gifted in the chestal region and that this was the best way to draw attention to that region other than stuffing rolled-up socks into Cassie's bra. Kendra asked her if she wanted to pad her bra a little, taking a pair of socks from the closet shelf and holding them to Cassie's chest as if measuring the effect it would have. Cassie, frowning, said no, to which Kendra replied then yes, you do have to wear your shirt like that.

Going through the closet again, Kendra bemoaned Cassie's lack of lacy underwear, to which Cassie protested that what she had on was perfectly fine and there was no way anybody was going to see them anyway. Kendra smiled and said nothing, which to Cassie said volumes. Cassie punched her in the shoulder and Kendra burst out laughing.

Satisfied that Cassie's wardrobe was in order, Kendra fished into her schoolbag and pulled out a travel-size can of hair spray and a brush. She sat Cassie down on the floor in front of the mirror and sat herself on the bed behind her, combing through Cassie's hair and spraying occasionally until her front bangs swept gracefully across her forehead and, more importantly for Cassie, stayed out of her eyes.

Reaching again into her schoolbag, Kendra produced a small kit of makeup. Cassie started to protest, saying she didn't want to look like a clown, but Kendra reassured her, telling her it was only a little bit. She spent just a couple minutes using an eyelash brush and then put down just a hint of blush across Cassie's cheeks.

Finally, Kendra sampled Cassie's small selection of perfume from her bedside table. She opened each bottle and sniffed each in turn, at last settling on Cassie's favorite, a store brand that smelled like both blueberries and freshly-mown grass. She dabbed her fingertip and touched Cassie's neck beneath both ears. She hooked open Cassie's tanktop and started to apply perfume to her chest before Cassie smacked her hand away and punched her in the shoulder twice. Kendra laughed again.

"There!" Kendra exclaimed, stepping back to admire her handiwork. "Not too bad if I say so myself."

"So I'm your masterpiece, then?" Cassie asked, twisting and turning to examine herself in the mirror.

"Well, it might have been easier if I had a better canvas, but I'll take what I can get," Kendra replied, stepping behind her and putting her hands on her shoulders. "Relax. You look great."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Cassie said quietly.

Kendra frowned. "Why do you say that?"

Cassie shook her head. "I don't know. It's just...I mean, Zach asking me out? I've never even talked to him before and now he wants to go out with me? I don't get it."

"Oh, I get it." Kendra wrapped her arms in a hug around Cassie's chest. "I know exactly what the problem is."

"What?"

"This is the first time you've ever had a gorgeous guy think that you're gorgeous in return. And you don't know what to do with it," Kendra whispered in her ear. "Just take a deep breath and calm down. I'll be right there next to you, remember?"

"Yeah, until any of a half dozen guys show up and you leave me all by myself."

"Cassie," Kendra said seriously, turning her around to face her. "You're my best friend. I would never do that to you. You know that, right?"

"I know," Cassie replied, wrapping her arms around Kendra's waist. "I'm just nervous."

"I understand," Kendra said, rubbing her back. "But it's a party, not a warzone. There's nothing to be worried about. If you don't have fun, we'll just leave and we'll watch some movies at my house, okay?"

"Okay." Cassie smiled slightly.

"Okay!" Kendra leaned in and kissed her forehead. "We better get going," she said, looking at the clock. "We don't want to be too late when we get there."

Cassie turned off the lights as they both headed back into the hallway. In the living room, Kyle hadn't seemed to have moved one bit. Cassie thought about waking him to tell him where she was heading, but figured that it probably wasn't worth the hassle. She scribbled out a note telling him she was spending the night at Kendra's and left it on the kitchen table. Dutiful daughter duties complete, she and Kendra headed out.

"Have you ever been up by where they live before?" Cassie asked.

"A couple times," Kendra said. "They don't live too far from my house, actually. Same bus route and everything."

"Well, at least there's that," Cassie replied, relieved that at least she wouldn't be wandering too far into some unknown neighborhood.

*** * ***

They were lucky enough to arrive at the bus stop just as the one they needed pulled in. The rest of the trip went smoothly and it wasn't long before they arrived. It was a suburban neighborhood on a hilltop overlooking most of the city's major districts. Most of the houses were fairly large and two stories tall, though being within the city limits meant that the yards were pressed closer together than Cassie would have guessed. But they were yards, though, with actual grass and landscaping, much more impressive than the fifteen foot cube Cassie called a back yard. Tall evergreen trees lined the sidewalks on both sides of the road. Kendra knew where they were headed, so Cassie let her take the lead. It was only a few blocks before she heard the distinctive rhythmic thumping of a stereo somewhere nearby.

Even among all the similar houses on the block, their destination was easy to find. At least a dozen cars spilled out to line both sides of the street. As they approached, Cassie could see see a number of people on the front lawn. Despite the chill, a group of people were playing basketball in the driveway with a hoop mounted above the garage. She could see a good-sized crowd through the windows on both stories.

"You okay?" Kendra asked as they neared the front walkway.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Cassie nodded.

"All right, then," Kendra declared. "Let's go meet the locals."

They walked up the stairs to the front porch and approached the door. Cassie was about to knock when Kendra moved past her and walked right in. Looking back at Cassie's shocked face, Kendra simply shrugged and gestured for her to come inside. Cassie did so, though she made sure to close the door securely behind her.

Inside, the party was already in full swing. The sound system that could be heard even outside was much more distinctive up close, pumping out pop rock music from a band Cassie had heard of, but never paid attention to. There were at least two dozen people in the living room alone, most of them standing in groups talking to each other, and at least two couples on the couches making out, oblivious to the world around them. Several people she recognized from school, though many others, whom Cassie assumed to be Steve's friends, looked much older than high school age. In the kitchen, several large pizza boxes, many already halfway empty, lined the counters, along with a stack of paper plates and cups. On the dining table sat several large bottles of soda, along with a large bowl of punch. On top of that, Cassie could make out the sizzle of a barbeque being ran outside the kitchen in the back yard. Through the kitchen window, she could see many more people in the yard. A volleyball net and ping pong table had been set up, and both had full games already in progress.

Nobody really seemed to take notice of them, though a couple people from school smiled and nodded at them, mostly at Kendra. Cassie looked around, suddenly unsure what to do with herself.

"Oooh, look. Nom-noms," Kendra said in an exaggerated childlike voice, pointing toward the pizza. "Let's go get some before they run out."

The pizza didn't look even close to running out, but Cassie went along with Kendra anyway. All she'd had to eat today was a pop tart and half a sandwich, and the thought of pizza sounded great. She scooped up two slices onto a plate and poured herself some soda while Kendra took a napkin and tucked one corner into her blouse with mock dignity.

"Cassie!" a male voice called out.

Cassie quickly swallowed the bite of pizza she had just taken, nearly choking in surprise. Zach Franklin came in from the back yard through the kitchen door. He had changed into khaki pants and a tight black sweater, though he was still wearing the bandana she had seen him wearing earlier.

"I'm glad you could make it," Zach said, stopping in front of her. "You too, Kendra. Did you both find the place okay?"

"Yeah, just fine," Kendra replied. "I live just a few blocks from here, so I helped show Cassie where it was."

"Great. I'm really glad to see you," Zach said, his eyes lingering on Cassie.

"Me too. I mean, I'm glad to see you, too," stammered Cassie, her cheeks suddenly flushing red.

"Oh, yeah, I couldn't get her to be quiet about how excited she was about 'Zach' this and 'Zach' that," Kendra drawled.

"Kendra!" Cassie hissed, slapping her arm with the back of her hand, suddenly embarrassed.

Zach laughed slightly. "Well, you found the food okay. Let's see. There's music playing, obviously. You probably saw the guys playing basketball out front. My brother's cooking chicken on the barbeque, if you want some." He gestured outside, where a man in his mid twenties dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and baseball cap was busy with sauce brush and spatula. "And we're playing volleyball and beer pong out back, if you want to join in."

"Beer pong?" Cassie asked.

"Well, mainly for my brother and his friends," Zach explained. "For the rest of us, it's mostly root beer pong."

"Okay," Cassie said. "Just as well. I'm not really much of a drinker."

"Yeah, you don't really strike me as the drinking type," Zach replied, smiling to make it clear he didn't see that as a bad thing. "So, wanna head outside?"

"Sure," Cassie nodded.

All three of them pulled up chairs on the outdoor patio and started talking. Zach asked what Cassie wanted to study when she graduated. She told him that she'd thought of medical school, but wasn't completely certain. But she did want to travel and help people and that seemed like a good way to go about it. When she asked him, he replied that he'd been asked by a few different colleges to study with them under a football scholarship. His parents were helping him sort through the different programs to figure out which was the best deal. When she asked if he wanted to play professionally, he laughed and said it'd be great if he were that good, but he doubted it.

"So where did your brother come back from?" Cassie asked. "Has he been away a long time?"

"About six months or so," Zach replied. "He's in an archaeology doctorate program and he's been on an excavation in Egypt. He said they found some really interesting artifacts from a lost dynasty or something."

"Like what?"

Zach waved a hand dismissively. "I'm not really sure. A bunch of statues and figurines and some weird hieroglyphic tablets. He brought a couple things back with him to show us. They looked pretty cool, but that's not really my thing."

"Isn't that against the rules?" Cassie asked. "Bringing back stuff like that for personal use?"

"He said it wasn't that big a deal. He's going back to school in a couple weeks and he said he'd take them all back with him. He just wanted to show us in person what he'd been working on."

Kendra, for the most part, stayed out of the conversation. A few times someone sat down next to her and started chatting. She replied back friendly enough and with her usual saucy humor, but the guys all ended up moving on when she made it clear that she wasn't budging from her seat for "somewhere more private" until her friend was good and ready. Luckily, by then the wind had died down and there were a couple of outdoor heaters mounted nearby, so she was in a good mood.

At one point, a game of volleyball had finished wrapping up. The losing team took their defeat with good humor and scattered to find other things to do while the winners stood by waiting for the next group of challengers. Zach asked if Cassie and Kendra wanted to play a round and they, with a few others, quickly found themselves on the lawn for a game.

Cassie had never been that good at volleyball when playing at school. Her height usually made it hard to get up on the net to set up shots. But she didn't mind playing just for fun. The game itself passed by fairly quickly and stayed mostly even. When it was Cassie's turn to serve, Zach stood close behind her, holding her wrist with one hand and moving her arm with the other to line up her shot. The closeness of him made her skin tingle and she just barely made the ball over the net, where it was quickly returned back by the other team for a point. He did the same thing with Kendra, but Cassie didn't mind. He was just being friendly and flirtatious, and his piercing eyes didn't linger long from her own. Soon after, they had lost and moved off the lawn for the next team to try their luck. Kendra moved up next to Cassie.

"Oh god, you are so lucky," she squealed quietly, an enormous grin on her face.

Cassie smiled back. "Yeah, he's great, isn't he?"

"Yeah," Cassie agreed. Zach came up behind them and both girls turned to face him.

"You played pretty good," Zach said.

"Thanks. You, too," Cassie replied shyly.

"Yeah. We'll get them next time."

Zach had a look of righteous determination on his face, though his lower lip quivered with restrained mirth. Cassie and Kendra looked at each other and burst out laughing, along with Zach. Finally, they recovered, wiping tears from their eyes.

"So," Zach said, suddenly looking a bit nervous. "It's getting a bit cold out. Did you want to come inside and we can talk someplace a bit quieter?

"Umm," Cassie trailed off. She looked at Kendra, a sudden mix of excitement and fear on her face.

"Uh, yeah," Kendra jumped in, covering for Cassie's indecision. "I told Cassie that I'd stick with her in case something happened."

Zach nodded. "I see." He looked at Cassie. "Did you want to stick with Kendra, then?"

Cassie froze in place, her heart pounding. She could still feel her skin tingle where he'd touched her during the game, and all she could think of was how incredible the rest of her could feel if she let him. His piercing eyes stared down into her own and he became her whole world.

But...she came here with Kendra for a reason, and this was it. She could have left her alone plenty of times before, but she stuck with her like the best friend she was. It would be wrong to leave her now.

Slowly, almost imperceptably, Cassie nodded her head.

If Zach was disappointed, his face didn't show it. "I get it," he said. He thought for a moment before speaking again. "How about if Kendra came up with us? Would it be okay then?"

"I don't-" Kendra began. Zach reached out and caressed her cheek. She leaned into his hand, almost seeming to melt on the spot. "I-"

"I don't want to make anyone feel uncomfortable," Zach said. "I just want to have some privacy with Cassie. To get to know her better. And if she wants a chaperone to make her feel better, then everyone's happy, right?"

Kendra looked up into his piercing eyes. Her mouth worked, but no words came out. "Yeah," she finally said. "Yeah, I guess that's okay."

Zach's face broke into a wide grin. "Great. Let's go in, then." He took each of their hands in his own and ushered them inside.

*** * ***

The party had mostly died down by that point. Most of the younger guests with curfews had already left, and the stereo had been turned down quite a ways to avoid disturbing the neighbors. Zach ushered the girls upstairs and led them into a large bedroom at the end of the hall. There were several football posters lining the walls. A desk was placed in one corner of the room. A small lamp sat on top and was already turned on, giving a soft amber glow. Zach closed the door softly behind him and left the bedroom lights turned off. He sat Cassie down on the edge of the bed and sat down next to her.

"Go ahead and sit over there, if you want," he said, gesturing toward the swivel chair at the desk.

"Okay," Kendra replied quietly. She sat down in the chair and turned to face the bed, but did not move.

"So," Zach said, smiling. "Here we are."

"Yeah," Cassie replied after a moment. After the chill outside, the bedroom seemed almost stifling. She could feel the heat off Zach's body, sitting so close, radiating off him in waves.

"It's really hot in here," Cassie finally said, looking to fill the silence.

"Yeah. All the heat in the house ends up here for some reason," Zach replied. "Does it bother you?"

"N-no, I'm fine," Cassie stammered. She berated herself for her nervousness. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She wiped her palms on her jeans.

"Are you nervous?" Zach asked, leaning toward her

Cassie cast about for something clever to say but finally settled on the truth.

"Just a bit," she admitted.

"Don't be," he whispered, and then his lips were on hers. She hesitated, confused, for just a moment, before her lips pressed back just as urgently. He put his hands to her shoulders and eased her back on to the bed. The mattress was so soft her eyes drifted shut. She felt her hands wrap around his neck and pull him closer. She could feel his hands around her arms and sides. Everywhere he touched, there was a sharp tingling sensation, like a feather wrapped in nettles. The heat in the room was overwhelming. He was so close, now, lying right next to her, his hands roaming across her skin. Her head felt wrapped in cotton. She couldn't put two words together and she moved on instinct as she pulled Zach's sweater off over his head in one swift motion. Except...

"Kendra!" she gasped, panting.

"She's fine," Zach replied, flashing her a reassuring smile. "I'll be with her soon. You're the one I'm taking care of right now."

"Okay," Cassie said, unable to conjure anything more substantive. Her hands pulled his lips against hers and she surrendered again to that sharp pleasure. She felt his hands undo the knot across her chest and pull loose the pale pink shirt that Kendra picked out for-

"Kendra," she gasped again through his kisses.

"She's fine," Zach replied softly into her mouth. "Don't be scared. I'll take care of everything."

Cassie's eyes were closed again. She felt dizzy. She could feel the room spinning around her. She clutched Zach tightly, the only thing keeping her from flying away. His touch was the only thing that made sense. She felt him pull her tanktop over her head, heard the soft fabric landing on the floor. She felt her bra come free of her chest and heard the sound of it, too, hitting the ground some distance away. She could hear some denial, some dim protest within herself, but it seemed like a miragle in the swirling heat. She felt his hands on her, roaming across her, and the feel of his breath on her torso was like a cool breeze on a summer's day. She heard herself moan at the sensation.

As if across a great distance, she could hear the soft jingle of her belt coming free, the zipper of her jeans being pulled loose. Good. They were too tight, too constricting, too hot to be worn while lying in the desert with the furnace of Zach's body pressed close against her. Her last remaining garments were pulled loose and at that moment she had never felt more free. She could again feel that protest, that echoing discord, but paid it no mind. All there was, was right here and now. She felt his thighs press inside her own, felt his hand caress her warm softness like a bolt of lightning. She could feel tears running down her face.

She again felt that sound of denial inside herself, but there was almost no part of her left of her to listen. It did not vanish, though. It grew. And when it spoke, it was no longer in her own voice but one she heard just hours ago. It told her to stay out of trouble. To use her head. To keep her eyes open.

Cassie opened her eyes.

She saw Zach looming over her. His hands continued to roam across her body, sending that sharp thrill racing through her that made her want to close her eyes and drink it in. She bit her lip at the sensation but kept her eyes open. Her head lolled to one side and she saw Kendra. She was still sitting in that chair, looking back at her with almost empty disinterest. As if what she was seeing didn't register.

She pulled her head back toward Zach. She noticed with dim curiosity that he was naked, same as she. Her eyes wandered downward, past his torso. Her brain idly recalled that she had never seen a guy naked before. Vague images of photos from school floated across her vision. A wave of dizziness threatened to pull her under. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to shake her head before, squinting them open again. What she saw and what she remembered were very different. It was dark purple, almost black against his abdomen. It was knotted through with veins and folds of skin. It was covered in a glossy sheen, and far larger than she would have expected. It struck her dimly as faintly sinister.

Her gaze wandered back to Zach's face. He still had a smile, which grew when her eyes met his. Those piercing eyes seemed to grow larger, encompassing her entire field of vision. She couldn't make herself look away. She didn't want to look away. His head pulled back, though, and for a brief moment she could see his face again. See that smile. She kept her eyes on that smile. There was something there, something different. There was no warmth, there. No compassion. It wasn't a smile meant for her, but for himself. A smile of victory. He was still wearing his bandana. He was naked and still wearing his bandana. She felt his hips move and felt him, larger than she expected and faintly sinister, pressed against her softness. She felt a bolt of lightning race up her spine, followed by a twinge of caution. She again heard that voice inside her. Keep your eyes open. Use your head. He was naked and still wearing his bandana. She felt a stern pressure against her softness. It felt cold, larger than she expected, and faintly sinister. A smile of victory. Still wearing his bandana.

Slowly, as if in a dream, she saw her hand drift up to his bandana. She saw her wrist flick and move, but her fingers couldn't quite grab hold. She saw him lick his lips as he moved again and heard that voice of caution. She felt its urgency, as if it were screaming at her from a mile away and she knew there was no time left. With one last try, she saw one finger hook the side of the bandana's knot and limply drag it from his head.

She saw the same black mark she remembered finding earlier, but so much more. There was no bruise, but a growth. A tumor. Black and green veins raced from it across Zach's forehead and as she watched, they pulsed in time to some unknown rhythm. She saw his face, his smile of victory plunged into shock, those piercing eyes widened in disbelief. Inside her, a thought struggled to surface, fighting its way through the dizziness and heat that engulfed her.

This was not normal. This was not natural.

Cassie's eyes widened. She gasped. The room around her flooded back into focus and, like a bucket of ice water was thrown on her, the furnace heat was gone and she could _think_ again.

She looked up at Zach and didn't see him. Looking through his eyes was something else.

Cassie screamed, thrusting an awkward fist straight into the black growth on Zach's forehead. It connected, from barely a foot away and with a glancing shot, but Zach yelled, rolling away from Cassie and clutching his head in agony.

Kendra started. She blinked rapidly, looking around her as if seeing the room for the first time. Her mouth dropped in shock as she saw Cassie, naked as the day she was born, rolling off the bed and racing toward her.

"Kendra!" Cassie exclaimed, rushing into her arms as Kendra stood from the chair. Kendra's arms wrapped around her, holding her tight against her as Cassie burst into tears.

"Cassie? Oh god, Cassie! What's going on?" Kendra almost yelled.

"He- he was trying- he was a- oh god, I don't know!" Cassie sobbed.

"It'll be okay, Cass. Let's get out of here!" Kendra turned Cassie toward the door and, putting her arms around her shoulders, marched her toward it. They were a couple steps away when Cassie shrieked. Zach's hand wrapped around her ankle and, with one hand, pulled her off her feet, dragging her across the carpet toward him.

"Let go of her!" Kendra screamed. She threw a punch that landed solidly against Zach's nose. Cassie heard the cartilage snap, but he didn't even flinch. From his knees, he thrust out a hand, shoving Kendra in the abdomen and sending her crashing against the wall. She climbed quickly climbed to her feet, but stumbled in a daze.

"No!" Cassie screamed. "Get off of me!"

She struggled, trying to wriggle free. She kicked at his groin, but if anything landed, it didn't show on his face. His hands were like iron manacles, locking her wrists painfully on the ground behind her head. He slapped her hard across the face. Blackness crept at the edges of her vision as she tasted blood in her mouth. His legs forced her knees open wide as he again descended upon her. She tried to squirm backward, but he took both her wrists in one hand and slapped her again with his free palm. Her body went limp and all fight left her. All she could do was watch with half-lidded eyes.

"We must mate! We must have young! We must breed!" Zach hissed at Cassie in a deep, gutteral voice.

"Breed with this!" Cassie heard Kendra shout. Kendra had picked up a large, heavy trophy from the desk, and brought it down on Zach's head. It broke into several pieces but he barely seemed to notice.

"His forehead," Cassie gasped out. "Hit him in the forehead!"

Kendra looked and saw the black growth resting there. Zach looked up just in time for Kendra to retrieve a piece of trophy and send it slamming into his skull. Blood spurt out from the blow and he went limp, collapsing like a stringless puppet.

Kendra fell to her knees, rolling Zach's dead weight off of her friend before hugging her again.

"Cass, are you okay? Can you hear me?" Kendra asked, shaking her somewhat.

Cassie nodded weakly. Her vision was still swimming and Kendra's voice seemed to come from underwater, but she was feeling more steady by the second. She tried to sit up, but almost immediately fell back down. Kendra leaned over and put her hands beneath her arms to help her. A few moments later, Cassie was back on her feet, woozy but upright.

"Come on," Kendra urged. "Let's get you dressed and then we'll leave, okay?"

Cassie nodded, looking down at Zach, just to make sure he wasn't moving. Kendra sat her down on the bed and quickly retrieved Cassie's scattered clothing, helping her tug it on. The tanktop went on inside out and putting on the bra and overshirt was a waste of time. Kendra pulled Cassie to her feet and dragged her out of the room at a dead sprint.

*** * ***

**Author's Notes: I'm really having a lot of fun writing Cassie and Kendra. They have very different personalities and seem like they would run in different social circles, but when they're together it just seems like they fit together perfectly. It makes writing dialogue for them seem very natural.**


	3. Chapter 3

A small crowd had gathered in the hallway by that time, drawn by the violent clamor and shouting they had heard coming from inside Zach's bedroom. They all looked pensive, concerned enough to think about finding out what was going on yet too worried or self-conscious to do so. They listened as the shouting and breaking from inside suddenly ceased. One girl, Colleen, a nursing student in her early twenties who had heard about the party from a friend of Steve's, had been in the bedroom next door, in the middle of her own romantic tryst when she heard the first noises through the wall. She listened to the scuffling thumps and shouts, half-ignoring her one-night-boyfriend's fondling, torn as to what to do before finally throwing on a shirt and stepping outside, to where she now stood closest of those assembled to the door. Several moments passed in relative quiet where all she could hear was a shuffling movement from inside. She had just about made up her mind to knock on the door to see what was happening when the door burst open, ejecting a pair of terrified teenage girls, clutching each other as if for dear life. They looked up at her for a moment before the blond one urged the younger-looking Asian girl forward. Colleen, too surprised to say anything, leaned against the wall to make way and watched them pass, nudging their way through the crowd and down the stairs, before turning toward the still-open door.

She peeked her head cautiously around the jam, as if expecting a guillotine, before leaning the rest of the way in. The room was a mess. Splattered drips of blood marred the carpet along with the bedspread, which was itself tossed and disheveled. Scattered pieces of a large football trophy were strewn about the floor, and she could see a large crater, spider-webbed with cracks and breaks, in the drywall near where she was standing. Colleen heard a groan next to the bed and saw Zach, Steve's younger brother, push himself up from the ground, naked and clutching a bleeding gash on his forehead.

"Oh, god!" Colleen exclaimed. She rushed forward and put her hands under Zach's shoulder and chest, helping him to his feet. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Hand still stemming the bleeding on his forehead, Zach turned to look at her. Despite the blood marring his face, his piercing eyes were still held hers without wavering.

"Yeah. Yeah, it's fine," Zach finally replied. "It's just..."

"Is everything okay in there?" a male voice called from the hallway. Zach nodded slightly, wincing from the motion.

"Um, yeah. Yeah, every thing's okay," Colleen called back. "Just give us a little bit, okay?"

"Okay," the voice came back hesitantly. "Just say something if you need anything, all right?"

"All right," Colleen answered, sitting Zach down on the bed. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked Zach softly. "Is there anything you want to talk about?"

Zach looked at her again with those piercing eyes. "Yeah. Could you...?" his voice trailed off, his head turning slightly toward the open door.

"Oh! Yeah, sure," Colleen jumped up and eased the door closed. She picked up a handful of tissues from a box on the desk, moving to wipe some of the blood from Zach's face when he stopped her. He took the tissues from her hand and dabbed gently at his forehead. Colleen could already see the bump that was forming there. It must have been some hit.

"So what happened?" she asked, sitting down on the bed next to him.

"Oh, it was...it was just a stupid mistake," Zach admitted. "I didn't mean for it to happen like that, I...I just got carried away, that's all. It's all my fault."

"What do you mean?" Colleen wiped a hand across her face, feeling very warm. She wondered about Zach. Sitting so close to him, she could feel the warmth radiating from his body.

"It's just..." Zach whispered. Colleen leaned in close to hear him.

"It's just..." he continued. "I've never really...done it before. And I got a little too excited, I guess. And she got scared."

Colleen smiled a little at that. "That doesn't sound so bad. Just a...a miscommunication, that's all. Why were there two of them, though?" she asked, wondering where that question had come from even as it passed her lips.

Zach's cheek seemed to twitch at the question.

"I guess they didn't want to be separated," he finally replied, giving her a shy smile with those piercing eyes. "Maybe she just wanted to watch."

Colleen giggled at that, her stomach seeming to turn in knots at this little detail. She'd been in college a few years; those kinds of exploits weren't that unusual to hear about, but hearing it from him seemed different, somehow. She ran a hand across her neck and tugged at the collar of her shirt. She felt his hand on her thigh, and she was suddenly aware that he still had no clothes on. She thought about asking him to put on a towel or something, but somehow it didn't seem all that important. She'd seen her fair share of naked men, before, and none were as impressively endowed as he. It seemed rude to ignore it like that. There was something a bit odd about it, though. Something she'd never seen before, but she couldn't quite think of what. Something she read in a textbook, maybe?

"Warm, isn't it?" he asked.

"Yeah, a bit," Colleen admitted.

"Here." Zach set aside the wad of tissue and, before Colleen could think to react, took hold of her shirt in both hands and pulled it over her head in one swift motion. "Better?"

Colleen had begun to protest, but had to admit that the air on her bare skin _was_ much more relaxing. "Yeah," she told him in a small voice. The hand on her thigh crept higher, fingers sliding between her legs before resting at the clasp of her belt.

"This will help even more," he whispered against her neck, sending shivers across her body despite the heat. He eased her back onto the bed. She stared at the ceiling, only vaguely listening to the jingle of her belt coming loose. Moments later, she closed her eyes and decided that yes, it did feel much better. It was her last coherent thought.

* * *

Kendra took the lead. With one arm wrapped around Cassie's shoulders, she guided her forward, shouldering her way past the small crowd gathered in the hallway. She heard at least one person ask what the hell was going on, but didn't answer. The most important thing right now was getting the hell out. Even if she did have the time to spend, who would believe the answer? That she had sat in a chair with a dreamy-eyed stare while her best friend was almost raped not five feet away? That the guy who did it was twice as strong as he should have been and had something on his head that didn't look human? Not many, that's for sure.

They moved quickly down the stairs and headed for the door. The blaring music from the stereo had been turned off and there were only a few couples left on the couches in the living room, too caught up in their own activities to pay them any mind. Cassie had the presence of mind to reach out and grab their jackets from the closet by the door, handing Kendra hers and shoving her arms through the sleeves of her own. Cassie looked at the handful of extra clothes in her hand, briefly wondering what to do with them before finally balling them up and shoving them in her jacket pocket. Kendra got the door and they exited, Kendra slamming the door closed behind them, and ran to the sidewalk. They were halfway down the block before Cassie turned back. No one seemed to be following them. There weren't any sounds or commotion coming from the house that she could hear. Once they rounded the corner and were out of sight, they slowed down to catch their breath.

"What...?" Kendra started to ask before cutting herself off. She shook her head and tried again. "What...what was that?" she said finally, still breathing heavily.

Cassie shook her head. She was still doubled over, hands on her knees, trying to slow down her breathing enough to reply. Her heart was pounding, and the cold breeze felt like ice against the sweat on her face and chest. She knew that not all of it was because of the sudden sprint.

"I don't know," she finally gasped out. "It was like...like I couldn't control myself. I mean, I couldn't even think."

"Me, either," Kendra told her. "He just said to sit down and it seemed like such a good idea. And I just sat there and watched while...and I couldn't move. I mean, I didn't want to."

"You mean, like mind control or something?" Cassie asked. Maybe if they could find some kind of explanation, then she would stop feeling so confused.

"I dunno. Everything seemed fine. I was just sitting there like it was the most normal thing in the world."

"Me, too," Cassie nodded. She thought back, shoving the fear and panic out of her mind and tried to concentrate on what she was feeling at the time. It had felt like her brain was swaddled in bandages. Trying to spark a single thought was a massive effort that her body had rebelled against taking, like trying to lift a heavy weight while sinking in quicksand. She knew herself, the way she thought things through, and she knew that the way she let Zach go so far with her after knowing him for just a few hours was completely out of character for her. And yet, her body nearly trembled at the thought of it. Some dim part of her still longed to go back and let him finish what he started, but her rational self took that thought and choked it down with revulsion.

Mostly recovered by then, they began walking down the sidewalk. It was only a few blocks to Kendra's house, but still, every few seconds one of them looked back to make sure they weren't being followed.

"Should we call the police?" Kendra asked, turning toward Cassie as they walked.

"The police? What for?"

"I mean, Zach did try to...you know," Kendra gestured in the air, clearly not wanting to go into detail. "We weren't exactly in a right state of mind. Isn't that the kind of thing they're supposed to deal with?"

Cassie thought about this for a moment. "What would we tell them, though? That we went to a party, didn't have anything to drink, and then went up to a boy's bedroom and started making out with him and didn't say a word against it? And then broke a trophy over his head?"

"What about your face?" Kendra asked, pointing to the red mark Cassie's cheek where Zach had struck her, which had already started to swell. "That didn't get there by accident, you know."

"Yeah, I know, it's just..." Cassie trailed off, frustrated. "I mean, did you see that thing on his head? He told me he had a bruise from football practice. And the things he was saying? It's like he wasn't even human or something."

Kendra opened her mouth say something, then shut it again, conceding the point. They continued on for another half block before she spoke again.

"So how did you get out of it, anyway?" Kendra asked.

Cassie turned to face her. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know about you, but when I was in there, I couldn't even think straight and I was just sitting in a chair. Zach was spending most of the time with you, so it was probably even harder on you. So how did you get out of it?"

Cassie thought back again, trying to remember. She remembered laying on the bed. Her eyes were closed, but she could feel the unnatural warmth of Zach's body above hers. She could feel him moving against her and remembered feeling right then that the world was perfect. That all she had to do was relax and bask in the ecstasy of it. She had wanted to, but then...

"I heard a voice," Cassie answered quietly.

"A voice? What kind of voice?" Kendra asked dubiously.

Cassie spoke faster as the memory came back to her. "It was Dr. Bowman. Remember? When we left school, he said to use my head and keep my eyes open. When I was in there, I heard him talking to me again, telling me that exact same thing. Then I opened my eyes and started looking around and that's what broke me out!" she finished excitedly.

"So you remembered Dr. Bowman talking to you and that's what snapped you out of it?"

"I think so. I mean, the way he was talking to us when we were leaving, it's like he knew something bad was going to happen."

"But he's a science teacher," Kendra protested. "How could he have known?"

"I don't know!" Cassie shot back, somewhat louder than she meant. "All I know is that when I was up there, I heard his voice talking to me, saying the same thing he said earlier today. That makes me think he knows something about this."

Kendra thought about this for a moment before nodding. "Makes sense, I guess. It's just...I don't get it. Why would a substitute teacher be warning us about some bizarre hypno-rape?"

"Maybe we should try and find him?" Cassie wondered aloud.

"Maybe," Kendra conceded. By then, Kendra's house had come into view. Cassie couldn't see any lights in the windows, but nonetheless it was the most welcome sight she'd seen all day. Beside her, Kendra sighed with obvious relief. "Let's talk about it tomorrow, though. I'm ready to get inside and go to bed."

Sleep definitely sounded tempting, but Cassie was hesitant. She looked up and down the street again, but they were still the only people walking around this time of night. They weren't being followed, as far as she could tell, but still...

"Does Zach know where you live?" Cassie asked.

"No chance. My mom doesn't let me have any boys over, you know that. Relax. Everything'll be fine. Tomorrow we'll go to school and see if we can find Dr. Bowman's phone number or something, okay?"

"All right." Cassie gave in, and the two of them headed up the front walkway to the door. Kendra unlocked the door, quietly opening it to avoid waking up anyone inside. It was well past midnight by now. If Cassie were staying at home tonight, there would have been hell to pay with her dad by now. Kendra's parents, with decently successful jobs and a house in a clean, safe neighborhood, allowed their daughter a great deal of freedom, though they'd probably grilled her on her plans before she even left the house that morning. Cassie's dad never paid much interest to what his kids did after school as long as they were home on time, and even that wasn't always a sure thing when he started drinking and lost track of time.

Leaving their shoes by the door, they padded up the stairs to Kendra's room. It was much larger than Cassie's was, and much more "girly". Along with a large bed and oversized comforter, a dresser and desk were set against opposite walls, each one covered with a collection of stuffed animals and figurines. Posters of various bands and movie stars lined the walls, and several rows of bookshelves, filled with a mishmash of fantasy and romance novels, were mounted to the wall next to the bed.

A small green night light was plugged in by the door, but Kendra flipped on the lights after she and Cassie had gotten inside and closed the door. Both squinted at the sudden brightness. Cassie eased out of her jacket while Kendra headed for the dresser. Part of the zipper brushed against Cassie's cheek as she tugged out of her sleeves, making her wince.

"Here you go," Kendra said. She held out a pair of shorts and a sleeveless over shirt to Cassie. "You can wear these for tonight." She started, seeing Cassie's cheek clearly for the first time. "Geez, are you okay?" she asked, reaching out with one hand, making sure not to touch the mark, but brushing a speck of blood from Cassie's lips.

"Yeah, it's fine," Cassie replied, reaching a hand up to caress the imprint. She dropped her jaw and slowly worked it side to side. "Just hurts a bit. Doesn't feel like it's broken or anything, though."

"That's good," Kendra replied, relaxing a bit. She gestured toward a bathrobe folded at the end of her bed. "Go ahead and take a shower and I'll run downstairs and grab you an icepack."

"Won't that wake your parents up?"

"Don't worry about that. We're just trying to get you better, okay?"

She looked so concerned and maternal trying to ease every ache and pain that Cassie couldn't help but smile just a bit. "Yes, mother," she said with mock sullenness.

Kendra smiled at that, drawing herself up. "Darn right," she said haughtily. "If you're good, you might get a cookie and a bedtime story. Now march, missy!" She slapped Cassie lightly on the behind on her way out the door for good measure.

Cassie laughed a little, careful not to smile too widely with her tender face. She could still almost feel the hands roaming across her body and she mentally cringed at the sensation. She quickly stripped out of her clothes and shrugged into the borrowed bathrobe, slipping across the hallway into the bathroom and turning on the shower nozzle.

The water seemed to work a miracle against her. In her imagination, she could see the dozens of hand prints sliding into the drain with the soapsuds like dirt. Part of her wanted to stay in there and bask in the crisp warmth forever, but was still a guest at her friend's house. Her dad had a strict five minute rule when it came to shower times, in order to keep the heating bill down, which was just enough time to wash, shampoo, and rinse with a few seconds to spare. She compromised between want and need and counted off a full thirty seconds beyond her usual time, each second to her seeming to be a decadent luxury.

She quickly toweled herself dry and slipped the bathrobe back on. By the time she got back into the bedroom, Kendra had already returned with a plastic bag of ice cubes. Not only that, but as promised, on the bed was a small tray with a plate full of chocolate chip cookies and two small glasses of milk. Knowing Kendra's mom and her food habits, finding those cookies must have been a small adventure in itself. Or maybe she had a supply hidden in her dresser, somewhere.

Kendra handed Cassie the icepack and, gesturing for her to help herself to the cookies, picked up her own night clothes and padded across the hall to take her own shower. Cassie knew from past experience that Kendra would normally have tried to wheedle her out of the bathrobe before she could get dressed properly so she could use it herself, but Kendra was considerate enough to know that tonight wasn't a good time for that kind of thing. Feeling better than she had all night, Cassie pulled on her borrowed pajamas and flopped down on the bed to enjoy her late-night snack.

She had just finished her second cookie when Kendra came back inside, still toweling off her hair to an acceptable dampness.

"Feeling better?" Kendra asked, finally tossing the towel aside.

"Mmmh," Cassie nodded, mumbling through a mouthful of cookie.

"Good." Kendra stretched out across the bed, taking a cookie and dunking it into her glass. "How's your face?"

"A bit better," Cassie replied, swallowing. She shifted the icepack in her hand. "Doesn't hurt as bad, anymore."

"That's good." Kendra looked around, then leaned in toward Cassie, lowering her voice as if afraid of being eavesdropped. "So you really want to find Dr. Bowman?"

Cassie nodded, taking another small bite of her cookie. "It seems like a good idea. I mean, he helped me back there. He's got to know something about what happened to Zach to make him like that."

"Yeah, I guess. It just seems weird thinking that someone can see the future like that."

"No weirder than anything else that's happened today," Cassie insisted. "And if I had to choose, I'd rather have helpful-weird than bad-weird."

"Okay. So you want to go to the school tomorrow, right?"

"It's a good place to start. There's always some secretary or someone working in the office on weekends. We'll just ask and see if there's a good phone number or something listed for him. He's a teacher, they've got to have something like that on file, right?"

"Makes sense," Kendra agreed, finishing the last of the cookies and downing half her milk in one swallow. Cassie sipped at her glass and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. Just after one on the morning. She groaned, suddenly feeling the weight across her eyelids. "I'm ready for bed, how about you?"

The mere mention of bed seemed to trigger a yawn in Kendra. "Yeah." She picked up the tray from the bed and moved it to the desk before flipping off the light switch. Cassie pulled down the covers while Kendra moved an extra pillow to the other side of the bed. The mattress was big enough to give them both enough space without crowding, but they huddled together anyway, holding each other close.

"Listen," Kendra whispered, their faces so close together that their noses touched. "We'll figure this out. We'll get through this, I promise. I love you."

"I love you, too," Cassie whispered back. She paused. "But if you don't get your hand off my leg, you're not leaving this room alive."

"Oh," Kendra replied sheepishly. "Sorry. I thought that was my leg."

"Sure you did, perv," Cassie said. "Good night."

"'Night, Cass."

They burrowed into the mattress for a few moments, each trying to find the perfect spot before settling in. All the hours of the day seemed to hit Cassie's head like a hammer and her eyes eased shut. She breathed in deep and let out a long sigh that seemed to carry all of her stress and fear with it.

It was then, in that instant of perfect quiet, that she heard someone opening the front door.


	4. Chapter 4

Both Cassie's and Kendra's eyes flew open at the sound. A slight rattle of the doorknob and the creek of the door swinging on its hinges. They froze, not even daring to breathe, listening. Cassie's heart began pounding so loud in her head, she was sure she wouldn't be able to hear anything else. But then...there! A muffled footstep pressing against the living room carpet.

"Who is it?" Kendra whispered so quietly that though Cassie was less than a foot away, she still could barely hear.

Cassie shook her head, the rustle of the pillow seeming impossibly loud. "I don't know," she whispered back.

"It couldn't be Mom or Dad," Kendra replied after seeming to entertain the idea for a moment. "They were both in bed when we got here. And nobody else has a key."

"Could Zach have found out?" Cassie asked, her eyes wide.

"I told you, I never have any guys over here. He doesn't know where I live."

"What about the other girls there?" Cassie persisted, grabbing Kendra's hand beneath the covers. "Did they know? Would they have told him?"

"I don't know," Kendra replied after a second. "I doubt it. They know my parents don't let boys visit me here."

Another thought occured to Cassie.

"What about your security system?"

"What about it?" Kendra asked, confused.

"Shouldn't it have gone off by now? You reset it, right?"

A frown crossed Kendra's face. "Yeah, I did."

Slowly, carefully, Cassie folded back the covers and turned onto her knees, every squeak of the mattress causing her to freeze in place, cringing. She peeked her head over the bottom of the window and folded back the blinds with one finger.

"There's no car in the driveway," she told Kendra after a moment's search.

"A robber should have a getaway car," Kendra added. "We should call the police."

"With what? I don't have a cell phone," Cassie replied. Her eyes narrowed. "Don't you?"

"Yeah," Kendra answered, looking away slightly.

Cassie frowned, leaning in close. "Where is it?"

Kendra winced helplessly. "Downstairs? Maybe?"

"What? You don't have it up here?" Cassie hissed angrily. "What kind of girl doesn't have a cell phone within arm's reach at all times?"

Kendra reached out, clapping a hand against Cassie's mouth and shushing her with a finger against her lips. Cassie blushed, realizing how loud her whispering tirade must have been. She nodded to show that she understood. Kendra nodded back and took her hand away.

"So what do we-?" Kendra started to ask, but Cassie held up a hand, turning to face the door, listening.

"Do you hear that?" she asked quietly.

Kendra leaned toward the door, cupping a hand against her ear. "Sounds like...beeping."

Cassie nodded. She could hear a high-pitched beeping, constant as a metronome. She could just barely hear it now, and as she listened it faded away. She could hear footsteps moving slowly across the living room. A few moments later, the footsteps came closer, bringing the beeping sound with them.

Cassie's heart leaped into her throat as she heard the clear thud of a footstep against the bare wood of the staircase, slowly ascending. Cassie whirled toward Kendra.

"Can we lock the door?"

Kendra quickly shook her head, her lower lip trembling. "No lock."

Seeing her friend's terror, Cassie reached out and pulled her close, resting Kendra's head beneath her chin. She looked around frantically, looking for something, anything they could use. No baseball bat or anything that heavy. There was no way she and Kendra could move the dresser against the door in time. It was a fifteen foot drop from the window to the driveway, which was possible, but likely in bare feet to break an ankle, and would be too noisy to go unnoticed. Which only left...

"Under the bed!" Cassie ordered. Kendra nodded and they rolled off the mattress on opposite sides, moving to crouch down when Cassie stopped. "Wait. Make the bed first."

Kendra's eyes widened in questioning.

"If the bed's been slept in, he'll know someone's been here, now help me!" Cassie explained rapidly.

Kendra nodded. They each bundled one corner of the sheet and comforter and flung it back into place. Cassie straightened out the pillows and Kendra tucked her hands over the blanket down beneath them to tuck them in. By then, the footsteps had reached the top of the stairs and had turned down the hallway. Kendra's was the first door and they had only seconds.

"Get down," Cassie whispered. Quickly, but careful to avoid thudding against the ground, she and Kendra lay down and shuffled beneath the mattress. The black bed skirt helped conceal them from view, and they huddled together at the center, arms around each other's shoulders. Cassie could see that Kendra was almost in tears. Rather than spare words to make her feel better, she moved her hand over Kendra's mouth and hushed quietly into her ear. Cassie took a deep breath, trying to will her pounding heart to stop beating.

The bedroom door eased open. Through the bottom of the bed skirt, Cassie could only see a pair of polished black boots. The intruder hadn't turned on any lights, and the ambient glow from outside the window was too dim to make out any features. Several pinpricks of light, red and blue, cascaded across the carpet in front of him. Cassie could hear the beeping noise clearly now. It had to be coming from something in his hand, along with those lights.

Trying not to blink, Cassie's eyes track the black boots as they moved from the doorway up to the foot of the bed, barely a foot in front of her face. He paused, turning in place to look around the room. He moved up the bedside. Cassie didn't dare turn her head to look back at him, but she could hear him leaning over, feeling at the pillows. He tossed back the bedspread all the way, draping the front edge across the back of the bed directly in front of Cassie, obstructing her view. He paused again, making a deep "Hmm" sound. Cassie then heard several loud metallic pings from above, as if he were hitting the device in his hand, but the lights and beeping remained unchanged. Finally, he stepped back, facing the window for a moment before turning back. He circled the perimeter of the room, step by step. The lights on the floor shifted rapidly as he seemed to move the device back and forth in his hand. He stopped by the door, and Cassie heard a slight click. The cascading lights and beeping both ceased. Cassie heard the door being eased closed and then silence.

She held her breath for several seconds, straining to hear anything. But there was silence. Slowly, she eased the air out of her lungs and peeled her hand away from Kendra's mouth. "I think he's-" she whispered, when suddenly the bedspread and skirt in front of her were flung away and she found herself staring into a man's grinning face not six inches away.

"Oh, hello there!" the man said.

Cassie and Kendra screamed.

* * *

Cassie and Kendra screamed.

The man screamed, startled at the sudden noise.

The girls, startled at the man's surprise, screamed again.

The man screamed yet again, shocked at the girls' redoubled shrieking.

He moved backwards, moving quickly to his feet. Cassie, sure that she was about to be dragged helpless out from under the bed, shuffled to one side and pulled herself upright. She wasn't quite sure what to do, but was sure that doing anything was better than doing nothing. The man's silhouette backed up to the door and flipped on the lightswitch, causing Cassie to squint painfully at the sudden brightness.

The man stood by the door, not coming any closer. Cassie stepped backward, blinking rapidly as the figure before her came into view.

"Dr. Bowman?" she asked in astonishment. There, standing in front of her, was Dr. Bowman, dressed in those same old-fashioned clothes she had seen him in earlier and looking like he had every right to be in a young girls' bedroom in the middle of the night. A sheepish grin was the only sign of wrongdoing, as if he'd been caught sneaking an extra cookie from the jar. By then, Kendra had crawled out from under the bed and slowly came to her feet, staring at Dr. Bowman in disbelief.

Pounding footsteps came thundering down the hall and the bedroom door burst open. Mr. Madison, Kendra's father, shot into the room and immediately caught sight of Dr. Bowman just a few feet away.

"Who the hell are you?!" he shouted, stepping forward with clenched fists.

"Ah, you must be Mr. Madison, am I right?" Dr. Bowman asked. Rather than back away, he stuck a hand out as if offering a handshake. "It's a very good pleasure to meet you. You must be very proud."

Mr. Madison brushed his hand aside and instead grabbed him by the lapels of his velvet jacket, backing him up and shoving him against the wall.

"You better start making sense before I beat some into you and give what's left to the police!" he growled.

"Oh. Well," Dr. Bowman said quietly, somewhat deflated. "If you'll allow me...?" he asked, gesturing toward his jacket. When Mr. Madison gave no answer, he slowly reached inside his jacket and withdrew a small black billfold. He flipped it open, revealing a small white piece of paper.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Dr. Bowman, Department of Education, Child Development Division."

Cassie couldn't quite see what was on the paper, but Mr. Madison's eyes seemed to linger on it for a long while, though his grip didn't slacken in the least. She figured it must have been his identification. Cassie saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned, seeing Mrs. Madison standing in the doorway, holding a phone in her hand with fingers poised over the emergency button. Neither she; nor Kendra, who turned to face Cassie with open-mouthed astonishment; nor for that matter Cassie herself, quite knew what to make of what was happening. They had planned on looking for Dr. Bowman anyway, but never imagined finding him quite this way.

"James?" Mrs. Madison asked hesitantly. "Should I call the police?"

Long moments passed as James looked back and forth between Dr. Bowman's identification and his face, which was now the picture of polite innocence.

"Not just yet, Kim," he finally answered before turning back to Dr. Bowman. "All right, Doctor. Why exactly are you making house calls in the middle of the night?"

Dr. Bowman smiled just a bit at that. "I'm very glad you should ask. As it happens I was Miss Kendra's substitute teacher earlier today and had the opportunity to speak with her and her friend about a scholarship opportunity. I turned in their profiles to the Truman Advanced Regional Development Institute for the Sciences and they both scored exceptionally well. It was such splendid news that I had to come over and share the news myself," he explained.

James shook him just a bit. "At one in the morning?"

Dr. Bowman gave him a sheepish grin. "I'm afraid I don't sleep much. And when good news comes in for my students, I get carried away sometimes." He slowly put his hands on James' wrists and gently pushed them away. "I am terribly sorry for making a scene like this."

Mr. Madison let his grip be released, but still looked suspicious.

"It's okay, daddy," Kendra said suddenly. "I asked Dr. Bowman to let us know what the results were. I just thought he's call instead of coming over in person."

Kendra's father looked back and forth between her and Dr. Bowman before finally stepping away. "Okay, so you gave us your good news. Now what?"

"I just need to go over a few details with them in private. Make sure the paperwork's in order and all that."

"Fine," Mr. Madison answered, sounding as if it were anything but. "We'll be right outside if you need us, girls." Both Kendra and Cassie nodded emphatically. Mr. Madison walked out the door, but turned to look again at Dr. Bowman.

"Oh, and doctor?"

"Yes?" Dr. Bowman answered.

"Never step foot in my house again," he replied, nearly slamming the door closed.

"Well," Dr. Bowman said, breathing deeply. "I'm fairly certain I deserved most of that."

"What are you doing here?" Cassie asked, the fear from earlier bleeding into suspicion.

"I came to check up on you, of course. I'm glad to see you both well. I found you with this," he continued, holding up a palm-sized gadget. "Phereomone tracer."

"Phereomones? What're you talking about?" Cassie asked, sweeping away a lock of hair. "How did you know what was going to happen earlier?"

"I'll be happy to explain, but there's one thing I need to take care of," he answered, reaching into a pocket and withdrawing a thick metal cyllinder. "Could I borrow you arm for just a moment?

Tentatively, Cassie raised her arm towards him. "What for?"

"Pregnancy test," he replied, pressing the cyllinder against the inside of her wrist. "Don't worry, this won't hurt a bit."

"Wait, what- ow!" Cassie yelped as a hiss of air shot out from the cyllinder. She stepped back, rubbing her wrist painfully. "What'd you do that for?"

"Just needed a small blood sample," he replied distractedly. He held the cyllinder in front of him, tuning a number of dials below a thin display attached to the base. "Should just be another . . . ah! You're not pregnant. Congraduations!"

"Why . . . what . . . ?" Cassie asked brokenly, her head spinning. There were so many questions running through her, she didn't know where to start.

"Why would she be pregnant?" Kendra asked, moving across the room to stand next to Cassie. "Nothing like that happened."

"I had to be sure," Dr. Bowman replied, pocketing the cylinder.

"Does this have anything to do with what happened with Ryan tonight?" Kendra pressed.

Dr. Bowman frowned. "Ryan, who's Ryan?"

"A boy from school," Cassie answered in a quiet voice. "I talked to him this morning and he asked me out. And the whole day, it just felt like . . . like I was in love, I guess. Kendra and I went to his house for a party and he tried to-"

Dr. Bowman put a hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to say any more." He gestured for her and Kendra to sit down on the bed. "Let me try and explain."

Once they sat down and were looking back at him expectantly, he took a deep breath and began.

* * *

"That boy you met. Ryan, his name was?" Cassie nodded. "When he talked to you earlier, he was close enough to you to douse you with a powerful pheromone his body generates. Those pheromones reacted within your body to create feelings of intense..." Dr. Bowman waved a hand, fumbling for the proper word.

"Horniness?" Kendra suggested.

"Well, I was about to say arousal or lust, but that term will suffice," Dr. Bowman answered, oblivious to Cassie's red-faced discomfort. "Anyway, that, combined with a fair amount of psychic compulsion, would have been enough to get you to do almost anything he wanted."

"I'm sorry," Cassie interjected, tentatively holding up a hand as if expecting to be called on in class. "But pheromones? Psychic powers? What are you talking about?"

"I'm sure you must have noticed something different about him," Dr. Bowman replied. "Something unusual or out of place that you'd never seen on another person."

"Yeah," Cassie said, thinking back. "He had this black...kind of tumor thing on his head, with veins running out. And his...you know," she trailed off, gesturing vaguely below her waist. "It looked the same way."

Dr. Bowman nodded. "Yes. All of these are signs that he's been taken over by a form of parasite I've been tracking down for some time."

"A parasite? What kind of parasite?" Cassie asked in a small voice.

"It's called a Tenkrul. A creature which can survive for up to several centuries in a dormant state, but once revived has only a few days to complete its mating cycle before dying. It has no sex organs of its own, so it merges with a humanoid male. It takes over his mind and body, rewriting his genetic material with its own to be passed on through intercourse to a compatible female. The female then almost certainly becomes pregnant with the Tenkrul's offspring. Within a matter of days the poor woman gives birth to dozens of Tenkrul larvae and dies. The larvae scatter, enter a dormant cocoon state, and survive to begin the process all over again."

Kendra laughed in disbelief, shaking her head. "I'm sorry, Dr. Bowman, but...alien parasites? You can't really expect us to believe this, do you?"

Dr. Bowman shrugged. "It doesn't matter whether you believe me or not about where the threat came from as long as you believe there is a threat. It could be a new kind of mosquito that got into the thirty-second flavor of ice cream that's causing it, and it would still be just as dangerous. And I have to stop it before it causes any more suffering."

"How do you know all this?" Cassie asked. "Who are you?"

Dr. Bowman smiled. "I'm very glad you asked. It gives me the chance to kill two birds with one stone."

He knelt down on one knee in front of the two girls and slowly raised both hands to their faces, brushing their cheeks lightly with his fingertips.

"I'll do better than tell you," he said, closing his eyes in concentration. "I'll show you."

Before Cassie could open her mouth to reply, the bedroom, Dr. Bowman, Kendra, everything had vanished, replaced with an inky blackness. She screamed in sudden fright, but there was no sound. No movement in the void.

_"I go into the dark places where no one else can follow."_

Just as suddenly, tiny pinpricks of light began to burst into being, surrounding her with a dim pale glow. Faster and faster they formed, coalescing into the tapestry of galaxies twirling in the dark. They rushed past her, so near and so large she felt she could almost reach out and touch the stars in her bare hands. She laughed at the sight, and could hear it, and could see her hand brushing through the ether of space, brushing through the minature galaxy as if it were a shimmering fog.

One individual star caught her attention. It glowed brigher than the others, and as she watched, it seemed to grow and expand in her sight until it seemed she could see every detail. It's light dimmed and it seemed to retract for a moment before it exploded violently in a brilliant burst of light. She flinched, shielding her eyes against the sudden glare, but within the heart of the exploding star the harsh brightness dimmed and she could see colors she'd never imagined.

_"I bring the fires of stars into the night."_

Just as suddenly as it appeared, the brilliant starburst vanished and she found herself floating in midair above a massive city. All around her, the buildings seemed to stretch on forever, so tall that as she looked down she could not see the bottom. Black clouds gathered above her but the buildings remained lit with a stunning neon glow. All around her, ships and vehicles of all sides flew, passing within inches of one another yet never colliding as they trailed stardust in their wake.

It began to rain, a silver downpour that seemed to reflect everything it touched. The air around her was filled with a hundred reflected colors and as she watched, a brilliant red bolt of lightning struck a distant spire, lighting the sky for one instant with perfect clarity.

_"I make people better then they were before."_

A crashing ocean wave came from behind her and she turned toward it. As she did so, the glittering city vanished. She looked and saw an ocean. From side to side she turned and saw a beach stretching to the horizons. She felt her bare feet sink into the moist sand as the cool tide rushed in to pool around her ankles. A soft breeze kissed her skin as she looked around, eyes growing ever wider. The sand was a deep purple and glimmered like a precious gem in the fading ruby light of the setting sun. The ocean was a brilliant jade so vivid it seemed beyond real, as if it were painted by a master artist for just that effect.

Cassie could feel tears welling up in her eyes at the sight of it all. She laughed, threw her hands out, and fell on her back into the soft sand. The ground seemed heated from beneath her, and her hands and toes curled into it as she relished the sensation. The tide rushed in again, soaking her legs and chest and caressing her chin, and she could only laugh again at the refreshing feeling it left behind.

She looked up and saw a few wisps of cloud high above her. Just then, a shadow passed over her and her eyes widened even more as she saw a bird, followed quickly by a half dozen others, passed above her. They were larger than anything she's ever seen, with shimmering golden feathers and massive wings tipped in silver. Even at this distance, every detail about them seemed perfectly clear. Despite their size, they glided and circled above her with impossible grace. As she looked on, one of them dived toward the ocean. It's claws skimmed the water before it leaped back toward the sky, prey in hand and screeching in triumph.

_"I am the Doctor."_

It was all so beautiful and so overwhelming that she found herself clenching her eyes shut, just for a moment so she could catch her breath. She heard herself sniffling with tears as she slowly opened her eyes. The ocean, the beach were both gone. Dr. Bowman- no, the Doctor, was smiling warmly at her, his hand still resting against her cheek. She rested her face against it, cherishing the inner warmth it contained. As she did so, his thumb came up and brushed away the tears from her face.

"That's who I am," he said simply.

*** * ***

**Author's Note: _"If you could touch the alien sand and hear the cries of strange birds, and watch them wheel in another sky, would that satisfy you?" _- The First Doctor**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Notes: Apologies for the late update. I have been working on the story for awhile, but ended up skipping ahead to other chapters while leaving the following one behind. It took awhile to finish up and come back, but in exchange, I've managed to cram about two chapter's worth of content into this update. And with the work I've done in advance, future updates shouldn't be quite as long in forthcoming. As promised, the end of Act 1 is coming up soon, and after that we'll finally begin working on the Time War in earnest. I appreciate your patience and as always, comments and reviews are always welcome. Enjoy!**

"That was beautiful," Cassie admitted, tears welling in her eyes. Beside her, Kendra could only nod in agreement.

"I'm glad you thought so," the Doctor replied, smiling to them both. "A bit melodramatic, to be sure, it but helped protect your minds from everything else I had to do while I was there."

"What do you mean?" Cassie asked.

"A Tenkrul is only partially reliant on phereomonal traces to track down its intended mates," the Doctor explained. "It can also psionically attach itself to others so that not only can they follow victims to where they have gone, but to where they plan to end up. The Tenkrul inhabiting your friend's body had attached itself to you, and to a lesser degree to you, also, Kendra. What I did was to enter your minds and remove it's hooks from your consciousness."

"What about that other thing you said?" Kendra asked. "Those pheromones you talked about."

"Thank you for bringing it up, I was just getting to that," the Doctor replied. He reached into a jacket pocket and began rummaging around. "It's what took me so long to get here, unfortunately. Every pheromone signature is unique and requires a unique masking agent in order to counteract. It took me quite some time to find the precise blend required." He frowned slightly as he continued to search. "Let's see...blow dryer, no. Safety pins, spare crayons, Harry Potter Book 8 pocket edition, well worth the wait, by the way. Ah, there it is," he exclaimed, withdrawing a clear crystal vial filled with pale violet liquid. The vial was capped with a fine brass nozzle connected to a tube with a small hand pump at the end.

"Is that a perfume bottle?" Kendra asked dubiously.

"A splendid sense of observation you have, Miss Kendra, don't let anyone tell you different. Now, I think you'll find the lavender fragrance to be prominent yet understated, with just a hint of wheat to evoke that sense of frontier excitement," he explained teasingly as he handed Cassie the bottle.

Hesitant, Cassie took an experimental sniff and, to her surprise, found it to be exactly as the Doctor described. She held the bottle beneath her chin and squeezed the pump, applying the mixture on both sides of her neck as if getting ready for a date. She handed the bottle over to Kendra, who quickly did the same. She handed the bottle back to the Doctor, who nodded approvingly.

"Are you sure this is enough?" Cassie asked.

"About twenty times more than, I should think. The pheromone traces are extremely minute. It will only take a few seconds for the components in the mixture to cancel them out completely."

"You'd probably make a fortune selling this," Kendra remarked, tracing a finger across her neck and sniffing it approvingly.

"I did, once. Calvin promises that the paperwork was simply mixed up but I think he just didn't like being outdone."

"Doctor?" Cassie asked, a sudden shadow crossing her features.

"Yes?"

"You were saying before that Zach, or that Tenkrul thing, could read my mind, right?"

"Only to a very limited degree. Locations, familiar faces, that sort of thing."

"And you stopped by his house earlier, right? And you didn't see him?"

"No, I didn't. Just a...never mind that, for right now," the Doctor cut himself off.

"But that means he's out there right now!" Cassie exclaimed, growing more agitated by the second. "What about my house? My dad, god, my brother, what'll he do to them? I have to go home." She stood from the bed and darted to the chair where her clothes were draped.

The Doctor walked over to her put his hands on her shoulders, looking down at her face. "Cassie, I need you to listen to me. Yes, it may go to your house, but it doesn't want them. It wants you. They shouldn't be in any danger as long as you're not there, but if you show up and it comes looking, then I can't say what might happen. Do you understand?"

Cassie trembled beneath the Doctor's gaze, looking ready to break free and escape, despite his words. Finally, though, she took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "I understand. But what are we going to do?"

"I'll go to your house, myself," the Doctor replied nonchalantly.

"But you just said..."

"I said that you couldn't go, Cassie. But I have to. If I don't stop it, then it will leave nothing but death and misery in it's wake."

"How are you going to stop it, though?"

"I have my ways."

"But...but you don't even know where I live!" Cassie sputtered, grasping one last time. Her eyes widened when the Doctor blithely recited her address from memory. "How did you know that?" she asked, stunned.

"I'm a substitute teacher, Cassie. A quick trip to student records told me everything I needed to know," the Doctor answered with a hint of amusement, and Cassie blushed at such a common answer when she'd been half-expecting some source of otherworldly knowledge.

"So here's what you're going to do," the Doctor continued. "You're going to stay here, tuck yourselves in nice and snug, and go back to sleep. Now that the pheromones are neutralized and the psychic connection's broken, there's no way for the Tenkrul to track you down here. In the meantime, I'll go to your house and if and when it shows up, I will take care of it. Once that'd done, I'll come back here and tell you that everything's been taken care of, you'll both thank me from the bottom of your hearts, and we'll all enjoy a nice big breakfast of eggs and toast with a tall glass of orange juice. Oh, and a bagel. I like bagels. Good? Sounds like a plan? Splendid." With that, the Doctor patted Cassie on the cheek, waved goodbye to Kendra, and headed out the door.

"Girls? Are you okay in there?" Kim asked from outside the door a few moments later. Clearly she, and likely James, as well, had been waiting outside in the hallway the entire time waiting for 'Dr. Bowman' to finish his business and leave.

"Fine, Mom," Kendra called back. "Sorry again," she added, somewhat sheepishly as her mom cracked open the door and poked her head in.

"It's not your fault, hon. It's just that if there's somebody over this late, your father and I like to know about it."

"I know, Mom. It was a surprise to us, too, but it won't happen again."

"Okay, then. Now go back to sleep," she finished, closing the door behind her.

"'Night," Cassie and Kendra mumbled.

Cassie waited a few moments until she heard Kendra's parent's bedroom door close before grabbing her clothes from the nearby chair.

"What're you doing?" Kendra demanded.

"I'm going after him, what do you think I'm doing?" Cassie shot back.

"But he said he wanted us to stay here," Kendra replied. "I think we should do what he says."

"That's my house, Kendra! That's my home and my family and I'm not going to let anything happen to them because of me!"

"Because of you?" Kendra repeated. "You make it sound like it's your fault."

"Isn't it?" Cassie asked, struggling with haste into her jeans. "If I hadn't been such a...such a _girl_ then this whole thing wouldn't have happened."

"Now I know I'm just a ditsy blond and that big words scare me," Kendra said, tossing her head from side to side with every word. "But it sounded like you didn't have much of a choice about the whole thing."

"But-," Cassie began again before Kendra cut her off.

"Do you think I had a choice when I was up in that room?" Kendra reminded her. "Sitting there and watching while that thing tries to have his way with my best friend. Don't you think I'd have done something about that if I could? I don't think you had it any easier than I did."

Cassie paused for several moments before finally collapsing onto the bed in frustration. "I guess you're right," she mumbled, shrugging out of her pants and kicking them across the room.

"I know I am. He sounds like he knows what he's talking about and he's already helped us, so I say we go with what he wants for right now. Let him take care of things."

"All right, you win," Cassie replied, defeated. Kendra pulled down the covers and they both climbed back in. The bed wasn't any less comfortable than before, but despite her fatigue from the night's events, the Doctor's explanations, Kendra's reassurances, and the utter stillness that now enveloped the house, Cassie was certain that she wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight.

The television was showing replays of old poker tournaments when Kyle woke up with a jerk. He squinted at the harsh glare and fumbled through the collection of bottles on the side table before finally finding the remote. He turned off the set and leaned forward in his recliner, rubbing his eyes and trying to knead away the pounding in his head. The amber glow of the street lamps outside cast a dim light through the open window, but Kyle again groped over the side table, knocking over at least one bottle before finding the switch for the small table lamp. The lampshade did its job diffusing the light, but what came through still caused Kyle to wince and clutch his eyes until it became bearable.

The throbbing in his head was growing more insistent. After a false start, Kyle managed to stand up and stumbled into the kitchen, dry swallowing a handful of aspirin and chasing it with water straight from the faucet. It wasn't until he finished drinking and wiped his face with a sleeve that he looked at the microwave clock and saw the time. Christ. Past two in the morning. The weekend meant a somewhat later work shift, but that still meant less than five hours before he had to get up. He didn't know how many hours he'd been sleeping, but it sure as hell wasn't enough. He looked down at himself, still wearing his dirty work clothes from earlier today. Yesterday, he corrected himself, glaring again at the tiny green numbers. He started to head toward his bedroom, unbuttoning his flannel work shirt and trying to decide whether to shower now or later, when he saw Cassie's note sitting on the table. Hanging out at a friend's house and then spending the night at Kendra's? He wanted to be upset that she didn't ask permission, but, as his headache reminded him, she could likely have played reveille on a bugle and he wouldn't have heard it.

The thought stuck with him on his way down the hall and he cracked open the door to Sammy's room and stuck his head in. Seeing nothing in the bed, he flipped on the lights and walked in. Damn that kid! He'd yelled at him about this just this morning and he still skips out! A quick look at the bed and desk told him what he already knew: No note, no nothing. Rubbing a hand across his face, Kyle headed back into the hall toward his own room, resisting the urge to slam the door behind him.

Kyle finally finished peeling off his shirt and threw it in the general direction of the clothes basket. He tried undoing his pants, but the effort of looking down and focusing made his head swim, and he stumbled backwards onto the bed. He managed to sit up and rest his head in his hands, but the thought of standing just then made his legs tremble.

Looking over, his reached out and picked up the one picture he had sitting on his bed stand. He, Yumi, and the kids had all gone to the park on the other side of town for the afternoon. The place had its own picnic tables and fire pits, so he and Sammy had hauled some charcoal and a cooler of hamburgers and sodas with them. He and Yumi had argued good-naturedly over the best way to cook a proper hamburger while Cassie and Sammy tossed a frisbee back and forth. Finally, Yumi had let him have his way and instead broke out her camera and began snapping pictures of him working the spatula while he, always camera shy, tried to shield his face with one hand and work the patties with the other. She then turned the lens toward the kids, snapping a few frames while they were playing until they noticed. Cassie, like her father, had yelped and turned away, hating to be the center of attention, while Sammy began posing with the frisbee like a nine-year-old bodybuilder. Just then, a jogger had come around the corner on the trail next to their table, and Yumi had asked him if he could take their picture. The man obliged and they all got together as a family, Kyle in the middle with an arm around his wife and daughter on either side, and Sammy right in front of him with Yumi's hand on his shoulder. The man had taken a few shots just in case before handing the camera back. A few days later, they'd had the film developed and Yumi had the best of those group photos framed.

None of them could have known that she would be dead less than a year later.

He and Yumi had gone out to dinner, just the two of them, while the kids stayed at home. It had been a rare treat for the couple that didn't get to go out on their own that much anymore. It had taken a split second for it to happen. They had been crossing an intersection and another driver, drunk, it turned out, had ran a red light and slammed into them at full speed, right into the passenger side door, which crumpled like tin foil. Yumi had been killed instantly and the twisted metal had crushed his own leg in too many places to count. The doctors had done what they could, spending the entire night setting the worst of the breaks and telling him that with some surgeries and a bit of luck in the future, he might regain the full use of his leg. But nothing they could do could help the fact that he still had to go home and tell his son and daughter, doubtless already sick with worry by now, that their mother was gone.

They took the news about as well as could be expected. Sammy was hit especially hard. After all the crying was done, he began to regard his father with a kind of passive defiance, acting against his wishes with sullen anger without ever openly saying why. Kyle could guess, though. In a ten-year-old's eyes, a few feet faster or slower, a split second's reaction quicker, and his mother would still be alive. He wasn't old enough to understand that sometimes bad things happened and there's nothing you can do about it. The worst part was wondering if he was right. Could he have been faster? More alert?

Cassie was different. Observant even as a young teenager, she had seen how her mother's death had affected her dad and brother and done everything she could to fill the void. She took on much of the cooking and cleaning her mother had done, acted as peacemaker when her family argued with increasing frequency, excelled in her schoolwork and never gave her dad a reason to complain. She had tried to be the mother when Kyle couldn't quite find a way to tell her that it wasn't her job. Heartbroken, he couldn't see at the time the burden he was placing on her shoulders, and years later, he had no idea how to take it off.

Kyle started when he realized he had been staring at the photo for several minutes while lost in his own thoughts. He set it aside and, with a groan, hauled himself to his feet and headed toward the bathroom. A shower was definitely what he needed right now. He'd clean off the grime and sweat out a bit of the booze. Maybe after work he'd round up the kids and take them to a movie or something. Let them know that he was still there for them. Maybe even sit them down and-

A loud knock at the front door interrupted him. It was almost two-thirty in the morning. Who in the hell would be knocking at this hour? A few moments later, the knocking came again, solid blows that rattled the door in its frame.

Kyle opened a drawer in his bedside table and pulled out a small wooden box, setting it on the bed. He opened it, revealing a matte black pistol and a pair of clips resting on a foam cushion. He loaded a clip into the gun, notched the hammer, and pulled back the slide, injecting a round into the chamber. He had not fired a gun since his days in the service, but he always kept his in working order just in case.

The knocking resumed, less a heavy rapping than a pounding fist. Kyle peeked out the peephole in the door and saw a kid with a baseball cap, built like a football player and around Cassie's age standing there. He didn't look angry or upset, and Kyle sure as hell had never seen him before, which made why he was pounding on his door in the middle of the night all the more confusing.

Kyle undid the locks and cracked open the door just enough to peer around the corner, keeping the gun out of sight. The kid looked at him but didn't otherwise react.

"What the hell do you want?" Kyle demanded.

The kid continued looking at him, still as a statue for several moments before his face suddenly broke into a wide smile. "Yes, sir, I'm Zach. Cassie's boyfriend. Is she here?" he asked.

Boyfriend? First he's heard of it. "It's the middle of the night," Kyle replied.

Zach simply stood there, smiling at him without blinking. "Yes, it is. Is she here?" he finally asked.

Kyle answered carefully yet forcefully. "Whether she's here or not doesn't matter. It's the middle of the night, kid. Go home before I call the police."

The way Zach stood there, not moving a muscle until he seemed to come to alive as he spoke, struck Kyle as wrong somehow. Like he wasn't quite real. Behind the door, he brought the gun up beside his ear, slipping a finger through the guard.

"I understand," Zach finally replied. "It's just that she asked me to come over. Please. I really need to talk to her. Just for a minute."

"Kid, you've got until the count of three to get off my property before I make you regret it!"

Zach's smile seemed to pull itself downward as if by gravity. "She's not here, is she?"

"One!"

Zach's head turned to the side, as if listening to someone whispering beside him. "No. No, she's not."

"Two!"

A little bit of Zach's smile returned. "But she will be."

Kyle brought his arm down, leveling the gun straight at Zach's head. "Thr-!"

Before he could finish shouting, Zach's leg shot forward into the door, faster than Kyle could follow. Kyle was sent flying backwards as the impact tore a gap through the door like kindling and ripped it completely off its hinges. He slammed hard against the floor, the splintered remains of the door landing on top of him. Dazed, he crawled out from beneath the door and felt around for his gun. He found it, but before his could wrap his hand around the grip, a foot lashed out and kicked it free, sending it skidding into the kitchen and causing Kyle to scream as a cascade of pain shot up his arm.

Zach's hand reached down and grabbed Kyle by the throat, hauling him to his feet with impossible strength. He angled his arm upward, forcing Kyle to balance on his toes to avoid being strangled.

"What the hell do you want with my daughter?" Kyle growled, clutching at Zach's hand and trying to break his grip. It was no use; the fingers were rigid as marble.

Again, Zach's head turned to the side, listening to some unseen advisor. "She is to be my mate," he finally replied, turning back to face him.

"What?" Kyle asked, unable to ask anything further. His head still felt cloudy and he could feel a warm trickle tracing a path down the back of his neck. The edges of his vision were starting to go dim.

"I caught her scent," Zach continued. "She is ripe. She will bear us many fine young. When she returns and finds her father here and in danger, she will submit."

Kyle's vision began to turn red. He didn't know what the hell was going on, what this teenager got here in the middle of the night, or why he was so damn strong. Nothing about this whole thing was natural, but he didn't care.

This son of a bitch wanted to hurt his baby girl. That's all he needed to know.

It had been a long time since his Marine close combat drills, but he could still dredge up the basics. He dropped his left hand down and brought it up in a fist against the back side of Zach's elbow. It landed more solidly than he could have hoped. The elbow bent unnaturally backward and the grip around his neck suddenly ceased. Kyle resisted the urge to collapse to his knees and instead charged forward, pressing the advantage. Zach took a wild swing with his uninjured arm, but Kyle was already inside the arc. The grazing blow caught his shoulder like a lead weight, nearly knocking him away, but he pressed forward. An elbow strike caught Zach right on the nose and shattered it, sending streams of blood flying. Two more solid blows rocked Zach's head from side to side, and an uppercut against the tip of his chin sent him to the ground in a heap. Zach didn't move after that and Kyle finally let himself fall, gasping heavily and rubbing his bruised throat.

Barely moments later, though, Zach rolled his legs toward the air and then kicked them beneath himself, bring him to his feet in a single quick movement like a martial arts master.

"That was foolish," Zach told him, his voice and expression strangely neutral, oblivious to the blood running down his chin.

Kyle's eyed widened as he staggered to his feet. After all that, he should have been eating through straws for the next two months! He came forward again with a fist aimed at Zach's already-shattered nose, but this time he was ready for him. A forearm deflected his hand and Zach spun around, bringing up his leg and snapping it into Kyle's midsection. Kyle could feel the ribs snapping like twigs as he went sailing into the coffee table.

Before he could recover, Zach was on him, pulling him upwards by the hair with one hand. As he came up, though, Kyle had sense enough to drive an elbow backward as hard as he could, sending it straight into Zach's groin.

Zach grunted in what Kyle guessed was pain, but otherwise didn't flinch. However, he swung the arm holding Kyle's head around in a wide arc, sending him spiraling across the floor and ripping large chunks of hair free of his scalp. Kyle tried to pull himself to his feet, but his chest seemed squeezed from the inside. He gasped raggedly, unable to get enough air into his lungs.

Zach was there again, raining blows down on him. Kyle tried to fight back at first, even landing a blow into Zach's sternum that would have sent anyone else to their knees, but Zach barely moved and each fist he landed felt like a baseball bat. Before long all he could do was try and protect himself from the onslaught.

Finally, the pummeling ceased, and Kyle found himself on his knees, looking blearily upward as Zach cocked a fist back, ready to land the one blow he wouldn't survive.

"That's enough!" a voice shouted from the open doorway.

Kyle's head lolled toward the voice. Standing there was a long-haired man dressed in a long velvet jacket and waistcoat, like a wealthy mayor from an old western. But there was nothing western about the device he held in his hands. Large and metal, with sharp angles and speckled with multicolored lights, it didn't look like any gun Kyle had ever seen, but that's the image that came to mind. It looked violent, and the man pointed it directly at Zach's chest and looked ready to use it.

Zach glared at the stranger and sniffed deeply, a look of confusion crossing his features.

"Your scent isn't human," Zach remarked. "Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor," the man replied. "And I know who you are. You're a Tenkrul reaching the end of its mating cycle. I can help you."

"You know nothing," Zach hissed, and to Kyle's ears there was anger in his voice for the first time.

"I know more than you think. This is a symbiotic deatomizer," he said, nodding toward the weapon in his hand. "I've programmed it to respond to a human genetic pattern. Meaning it will burn away every trace of foreign matter while leaving the human untouched."

"Now you have two choices," the Doctor continued. "You can come with me. I can remove you from the boy's body without killing him and revert you to your larval state. You'll be dormant, but alive. Or I can use this and destroy you completely. But I will not let you harm the boy or anybody else."

"I must breed," Zach said. Not taking his eyes off the Doctor, he hauled Kyle to his feet and positioned him in front of him as a shield. He was barely more than dead weight, but Zach easily held him upright. "It is all we know. I have done so already. But the offspring of this one..." he nodded toward Kyle. "Her scent sings to me. The young born from her will be most worthy."

"I know what you've already done," the Doctor said, stepping forward. "I've seen the results of your predation. I can't reverse the harm you've already done but I can stop it from being compounded."

"What do you mean?" Zach asked.

"The young woman from before. I found her still in that room. The harm had already been done. There wasn't much I could do other than cleanse the memories from her mind and halt her conception."

"You dare?" Zach's eyes narrowed.

"A small injection, nothing serious. A simple tincture designed to prevent pregnancy from taking hold. There will be no young for you from her." The Doctor's voice took a dangerous tone. "She was crying when I found her. She knew what she'd let happen but she didn't know why. Any other being in the universe and we wouldn't be having this conversation. But your species' entire purpose is to breed and propagate, it's in your nature. I can't fault you for that. That's why I'm giving you this one chance. Come with me and no harm will come to you."

Kyle could feel bruises and broken bones across his entire body, but his senses were slowly coming back to him. He coughed up a mass of bloody phlegm, struggling weakly against Zach's grip, but though he was barely half of Kyle's size, the forearm across his chest barely budged.

"Who are you?" Kyle wheezed. "Where's Cassie?"

"I just saw her. She's safe, believe me," the Doctor answered, taking another step forward and keeping his weapon's sight as near to Zach as he could manage.

"You will tell me where she is," Zach said, tightening his grip across Kyle's chest. "Tell me or the human dies."

"Kill him and you won't have time to regret it. Now put him down!"

Something rattled against the sliding glass door against the kitchen. In an instant, all eyes in the room snapped there to find the source.

"What is this, Doctor?" Zach hissed, suddenly agitated. "Some agent of yours? Some new treachery?"

"No one, it's no one. Now listen to me, it's not too late to stop this!"

"Dad?" a small voice echoed from outside. Footsteps dashed forward and an instant later Cassie ran in through the front doorway, eyes darting back and forth between Kyle and the Doctor. "Daddy!"

"Cassie, I told you to stay behind," the Doctor told her, not taking his eyes off the parasite and his hostage.

"Cassie," Zach whispered, closing his eyes and shuddering as if the name were ecstasy on his lips. His arms snapped from Kyle's chest to his throat. "Submit to me or the man dies!"

"Let him go!" Cassie shouted. She moved to step forward, but the Doctor held her back with one hand.

"Don't listen to him, Cass," Kyle rasped. "Run. Get out of here, now."

"I'm not leaving you, daddy!"

"This changes nothing," the Doctor warned Zach. "Your only ways out of here are with me or as a trail of atoms. Your choice."

"Submit or he dies!" Zach repeated, paying the Doctor no heed.

"Let him go!" she shouted.

"Cassie, stay back," the Doctor warned in a low voice.

"His fate lies with you," Zach said. His eyes snapped open. No longer human, they were each a swirling mass of green, laced with black veins leading to featureless black irises.

"You don't have much time left," the Doctor said. "Your host's physiology is starting to break down."

"I will have my young!" Zach replied. His hand tightened around Kyle's throat and he squeezed.

"No!" Cassie screamed.

"Last warning," the Doctor said.

A gunshot rang out. Zach yelled in pain, his hand dropping from Kyle's throat and letting him fall limp to the ground. He clutched his shoulder, a dripping mess of red and green spreading across his shirt beneath his hand. His head snapped to the side toward the source. Sammy was there, standing in the kitchen in front of the open sliding door and holding the pistol Kyle had lost earlier. There were tears in his eyes and his face was white with fear, but his hands were as steady as any veteran infantryman's.

Zach looked from Sammy back to the Doctor, still holding his weapon steady, and then to Cassie, who stood shocked at the unexpected sight of her brother. He must have been sneaking home after a night out with his friends and found the gun lying there. He looked down at his feet toward Kyle, who was clutching his sides in pain, but still managed to look up at him and smile smugly at Zach's own sudden wounds.

Screaming in pain and fury, Zach whirled and dashed at Cassie, arms outstretched. Before he could take two steps, though, the Doctor raised his weapon and fired. A red beam lanced out and caught Zach right in the chest. He stopped and grew rigid, his back arched as if his body were hooked on puppet strings. A red glow spread from the beam across his whole body as the beam continues to flow out of the device. Hundreds of tiny veins became visible even through skin and clothing, seemingly lit from within as if his heart pumped lava rather than blood. He screamed terribly until finally, the beam ceased and his strings were cut. He collapsed to the floor in a heap, wisps of acrid white smoke issuing from his body.

The Doctor set his weapon aside and crouched down beside Zach, putting fingers against his neck and wrist, checking for a pulse. Moments later, he nodded, satisfied.

"He'll be okay," he announced. "He'll wonder if anyone saw the license plate of the truck that hit him, but he should recover nicely." He sighed deeply, a twinge of regret crossing his features. He looked over to Sammy, who was still holding the gun steady at Zach's prone body.

"It's okay," the Doctor reassured him. "It's over."

Sammy hesitated for only a moment before setting the gun aside. He, along with Cassie, hurried over and knelt by their father's side. Kyle lay on his back staring upward, one arm clutching his side. He grimaced in pain every time he breathed, but he managed a weak smile as his children's faces came into view.

"Well," he rasped. "Aren't you two a sight for sore eyes?"

"Are you okay, dad?" Sammy asked, wiping a tear away with the back of his sleeve.

"Never better," Kyle reassured him. "You're grounded, by the way."

"Okay," Sammy replied, laughing and sniffling at the same time.

"I'm sorry, daddy," Cassie blurted. "This is all my fault!"

"How?" Kyle asked.

"I...I..." Cassie trailed off, unsure of how to answer.

Kyle chuckled, wincing as he did so. "That's just like you. Always taking the blame. Listen, sometimes bad things happen. They always will. But blaming yourself won't change anything. You just have to deal with it the best you can and move on." He closed his eyes. "Lord knows I haven't always done a good job of that."

"I've just called for an ambulance. They're on their way," the Doctor called from across the room. He walked over and crouched down next to Cassie, pulling a stethoscope from his jacket and placing it against Kyle's chest, instructing him to breathe deeply.

"Plenty of broken ribs," the Doctor concluded after a brief exam. "It doesn't look like there's any deep tissue damage, though."

"Who are you?" Kyle asked.

"John Smith," the Doctor answered. "I'm a substitute science teacher."

Kyle laughed, but was interrupted by a series of hacking coughs as he tried to speak. "Most...substitutes don't...show up in the middle of the night with lasers."

"I'm special like that," the Doctor replied solemnly. "Now try and relax. Those broken ribs could still do some damage if you strain yourself."

Minutes later, an ambulance pulled up to the house, lights and sirens blazing. The two paramedics quickly assessed Kyle's wounds and loaded both he and Zach into the back and took off. Sammy hopped in with his dad, but Cassie gave the Doctor a quick look before telling him that she'd be along in awhile. Sammy nodded at that before the paramedics packed everything up and drove off.

A police car arrived moments later (why one hadn't shown up until now was probably a symptom of neighbors wanting to ignore the racket, thought the Doctor), wanting to find out what was going on. The Doctor flashed him the same black billfold Cassie saw earlier and introduced himself as 'Special Agent Smith'. He calmly explained that a pair of gang members had broken into the home and savagely beaten Kyle Jacobs, the house's owner, presumably to rob him. Then Zach had arrived, looking for Cassie wanting to talk about their relationship. Seeing Mr. Jacobs in danger, he leaped into action and beat the two men off of him, chasing them out the door, but not before he was shot through the shoulder with Kyle's own gun. Both Cassie and her brother had arrived home just in time to see the two suspects fleeing the scene. The officer then asked Cassie if that was all true, to which she nodded yes, that's what had happened. The officer, who had been taking notes and examining the room all the while, explained that it was possible she and her brother would be called in later to give a statement, but it didn't seem likely given the circumstances. He asked if 'Agent Smith' had gotten a description of the two suspects, and the Doctor smoothly interjected with a dead-to-rights profile of two of the men Cassie saw gathered around their Cadillac every morning. She gave a small grin and didn't say anything when the Doctor surreptitiously turned and winked at her.

The officer finished by taking a few pictures of the broken door and scattered furniture, telling them that a full team would be arriving shortly for a more thorough analysis. Checking in on the radio attached to his belt, he told them that both Kyle and Zach had been checked in to County General and should be available for visitors at any time, adding that it'd probably be a good idea to spend the rest of the night there while the investigation crew did their work. Looking at the splintered plank of the door, he added that they'd likely bring along a temporary ply board replacement until the family got a chance to replace it. With that, he got into his squad car and headed off.

"Now, I thought I told you to stay behind," the Doctor remarked after the policeman had left.

"You said my dad was in danger, and he was. I couldn't just stay back not knowing what was going on," Cassie replied.

"I suppose I can understand that. What about your friend?" the Doctor asked.

"She tried to talk me out of it. But after she saw my mind was made up, she wanted to come with me."

"Sensible girl. Why didn't she?"

Cassie shrugged. "Too busy trying to decide whether to go out without letting her parents know. I didn't want to wait for her. Knowing her, though, she should be here any..." she was cut off by the sound of rushing footsteps coming up the stoop and bursting through the doorway.

"Cassie!" Kendra shouted, looking around the tattered room before seeing her friend and rushing across the room to embrace her. "What happened? Your dad, Sammy, are they-"

"They'll be fine. Dad was hurt, but he and Sammy are at the hospital right now." Cassie went on to explain what had happened. "The Doctor saved us."

"Just glad to be of help," the Doctor replied with a bit too much modesty. "I've already investigated and there aren't any more Tenkrul to be found. I hope you won't be too hard on Zach when he wakes up. I doubt he'll have any memory of the last couple days and he had no control over what he was doing."

"We know," Cassie reassured him. "But still, it'll be kind of weird for awhile."

"I suppose that's understandable. Still, now that every thing's in hand, I probably should be-"

"Wait," Kendra interrupted. "You never did tell us who you are."

"I thought I already did," the Doctor replied, amused. "I'm the Doctor."

"That's a title, though, not a name," Cassie said. "Okay, let's try this. Are you human?"

"No," the Doctor hesitated only a moment before replying. "You don't seem too surprised."

"Well, it's been a weird couple days," Cassie answered.

"Sooo are you a Martian, or...?" Kendra haltingly asked.

The Doctor laughed. "No, the Martians have been extinct for thousands of years," he replied, ignoring the suddenly widened eyes of his audience. "My people are called the Time Lords. We travel through time and space."

"You look human, though," Cassie idly remarked.

"No, you look Time Lord," the Doctor replied. "We were here first."

"So, do you have a time machine?" Kendra asked.

"Of course I do. Can't very well travel through time without one."

"Can we see it?" Kendra smiled up at him coquettishly.

The Doctor shrugged. "I don't see why not."

A few minutes later, a black police van pulled up to the house. A half dozen officers emerged from the back, carrying heavy cases of equipment with which to measure and analyze everything that had happened. After flashing his billfold to the lead investigator, the Doctor guided the two girls onto the sidewalk and down the road.

"What's that piece of paper you have?" Cassie asked as they walked. "Some kind of fake i.d.?"

"Something like that," the Doctor replied. "It's called psychic paper. When I use it, it displays any sort of identification I can think of. To whomever is looking at it, it looks perfectly legitimate and accurate. Here, try it."

He handed the billfold over to Cassie. She closed her eyes with a look of intense concentration before flipping it open. "How's that?"

"Well," the Doctor answered, lips twitching. "It's not bad for a first try."

"'Cassandra Jacobs'", Kendra read off, taking a peek. "'Licensed psychotic.' I didn't know they had those."

"Psychotic?" Cassie exclaimed, flipping the billfold around to see for herself. "It was supposed to say psychiatrist!"

"Like I said, not bad for a first try," the Doctor said, taking back the billfold. "Ah, here we are."

They had only walked a few blocks, Cassie noted, and were looking down a long alleyway. She looked and saw a few dumpsters, a wooden phone booth, some fire escapes crawling up the walls, and other assorted junk; certainly nothing that looked like a time machine.

"I don't see it," Cassie said while Kendra nodded in agreement.

"It's right here," the Doctor told them. "It's under a perception filter at the moment. Think of it as your first test. Don't try to find it. Just relax your eyes a bit and see if it jumps out at you. Off you go," he said, gesturing down the alley.

Cassie and Kendra took a few tentative steps forward. Kendra edged out ahead of her, looking in all directions while Cassie lingered by the entrance. It should be easy, she thought. Just look for the thing that doesn't belong. Well, you find dumpsters in an alley, that's for sure. Phone booths, also, and fire escapes weren't exactly out of place.

She shook her head and tried again, looking at the details. The dumpsters were a drab green, with patches of rust. The fire escapes were in decent shape. There were stacked wooden crates outside the stores' rear entrances, weathered and splintered. She looked back at the Doctor, who nodded and waved at her to keep looking. She didn't see a time machine, but she caught the grin on his face just fine.

Kendra was about twenty feet in front of her, moving forward slowly while her head swiveled back and forth. She was wearing a white goose-down jacket and black jeans, and Cassie smirked at the thought of Kendra managing to look fashionable even when she must have been on a rush out the door. The light from inside the phone booth reflected the booth's bright blue coating onto her jacket, seeming to paint it in pale turquoise. It was a huge phone booth, too, close to four feet across on one side and at least eight feet tall.

Cassie stepped forward as if in a dream, ignoring the insistent thoughts in her head that she was wrong, to look somewhere else. She tried again to look for details. A phone booth should have phone lines, but there weren't any coming down from above, nor from the building it stood next to. It was lit from the inside, as were the letters along the top, spelling out 'Police Box' on all four sides, but again there were no wires to power it. Finally, she stood in front of the doors and raised her hand, holding it there for several seconds before swinging it forward, hesitantly, as if the phone booth would vanish in a cloud of smoke if she disturbed it. But her palm smacked against the door and it felt comfortingly real. It was warm against her hand, and she looked back at the Doctor and smiled, knowing she had gotten it right.

"Very good," the Doctor congratulated her, coming up beside her along with Kendra, who looked slightly disappointed that she wasn't the first to catch it.

"Why does it look like a phone booth?" Kendra asked.

"Why, don't you like it?" the Doctor replied.

"No, no, it's fine," Kendra reassured him. "It's just...well, it looks like a phone booth."

"It's part of the chameleon circuitry," the Doctor explained. "It lets it blend in to the surroundings. Now, how about a look inside?"

"It's kind of small, isn't it?" Kendra remarked dubiously. Cassie slapped her in the side.

"Well, as they say, size isn't everything." The Doctor grinned. "And I make very good use of what I have."

The Doctor eased open the door and gestured for them to step inside. Cassie looked past the threshold and her eyes widened. It was enormous! She could see an entire spacious room crammed inside. She stepped back, trying to get a better perspective, almost certain that it had to be some kind of optical illusion. She took a few steps from side to side while peering through the doorway, but the view changed accordingly. As she did so, Kendra made a complete circuit around the booth, as if the room inside it were somehow hiding behind a curtain.

"It's...it's bigger on the inside," Cassie said, amazed.

"It gets even better once you take a look around," the Doctor told her, stepping inside and gesturing for them to follow.

Slowly, carefully, Cassie stood at the door and raised her leg, easing it across the threshold before setting it down and scampering inside. She looked behind her and saw Kendra closing her eyes and taking a little hop through the door as if jumping into a swimming pool. They were standing at the head of a short flight of stairs, which they slowly descended as they began to look around.

The room was even larger than it appeared at first glance. It had the look of a castle or cathedral, with stone walls and scattered candles resting on iron stands. The wooden floors were a rich, deep red, polished and waxed to a mirror sheen. In the middle of the room, a step led to an elevated circular platform, upon which sat a large metal console. It was formed in the shape of a hexagon, with each of the panels covered in dozens of switches, buttons, levers, and other controls. A polished wood veneer, combined with the metal fixtures and a scattering of multicolored lights made it a beautiful sight. Jutting from the center of the console was a large hollow glass cylinder that stretched several feet into the air. As Cassie looked closer, she could see two arrays of posts and slots inside the cylinder and seemed as though they'd fit together in an intricate pattern.

The platform the console rested on was bordered by four metal pillars, formed with intricate latticework, that stretched from floor to ceiling. Just a few feet away, she saw a large overstuffed leather chair and footrest upon a large Persian rug. There was a small table beside the chair, stacked with a handful of books and an empty teacup and saucer, the whole setup resting in front of a massive stone fireplace, already lit with a large fire that crackled and snapped comfortingly. As she looked further, she saw other furniture in the room, all beautifully crafted and probably more expensive than anything she'd ever owned: A large table cluttered with binoculars and other random objects, including an old-fashioned record player. A large desk stood far against the corner, complete with a crystal inkwell and an honest-to-god quill pen. And a small stand with a slightly oversized chess board and matching pieces, all made of polished wood and inlaid with gold leaf and small gems to accent certain features.

All around the room, tall bookshelves lined the walls. Some were in English, but many others were in other languages she did not know or had never seen before. Almost all of them seemed old, with thick leather covers and inlaid titles on the spine, the kind of books she would expect to be kept behind a glass case on display somewhere. But Cassie could see the wear on many of them, proof that they had been read and examined many times before. Assorted small statues, glass-and-crystal figures, and other trinkets also lined the shelves. In between and above the bookshelves were several large oil paintings, mostly landscapes but there were also a small number of portraits.

Back behind her, near the door where she entered, was an enormous grandfather clock, nearly eight feet tall, made of dark wood so well polished it almost seemed obsidian, and built with brass and gold fittings and a frosted glass panel. Off to the side, a large stone staircase led downward to a set of heavy oak doors, and at the far end of the room was another open door leading to a long hallway.

"It's called the TARDIS," the Doctor explained as the girls continued to explore. "It stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space. It lets me travel to any time and any place. Anywhere and any when."

"What do you do, though?" Cassie asked. "Is it part of your job?"

"My people aren't the most outgoing civilization. Every so often they'll travel to some distant planet or time period to study events but it's all very stodgy and academic to them. Treating people as if they weren't quite real." The Doctor shrugged. "I like to be a bit more hands on, you could say. I get to go where I want and help out when I can."

The more Cassie looked around, the more comfortable the whole place seemed. What was at first an overwhelming cathedral now seemed almost intimate. She could see how the Doctor would be at home in a place like this. A place that, like himself, seemed to blend science and history together.

"So where would you like to go first?" the Doctor asked suddenly.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Kendra asked.

"I mean by way of an apology. I know you've both been through a difficult time the past couple of days and I'd like to make it up to you," he replied, walking around the console and dialing at the controls. "Just a quick sightseeing tour. Is there anything you've ever wanted to see but never thought you could? Now's your chance."

"I don't know if we should," Kendra said. "I mean, I just wanted to look around. I didn't plan on actually going anywhere."

"That's a bit like climbing up to a diving board and not jumping, isn't it?" the Doctor teased. "Just one trip that I promise will change your life."

"I dunno. I think I should be getting home. I'm probably grounded for life as it is," Kendra protested, the excuse sounding weak even to her own ears.

"We're in a time machine," Cassie chided her. "We can get home five minutes ago. Right, Doctor?"

"Absolutely. With a little effort, I can get you back before you even left," the Doctor confirmed.

"Okay," Kendra finally relented. "I guess one trip'll be okay."

"Splendid!" the Doctor exclaimed. "So, any thoughts on where you'd like to go?"

He looked back and forth at the two girls, who both shook their heads mutely, too overwhelmed at the sheer amount of possibilities to begin narrowing it down.

The Doctor thought for a moment before snapping his fingers.

"Perfect," he said. "I know just the place."

Smiling excitedly at them, he threw back a lever. A mechanical groaning and wheezing sound filled the air as the ground lurched violently beneath their feet.


	6. Chapter 6

Dawn was just beginning to break over the city streets when the TARDIS rematerialized in the alley. Almost as soon as it landed, the door swung open and Cassie and Kendra walked outside, laughing and talking excitedly. The Doctor followed just behind, closing and locking the door behind him with a satisfied grin on his face.

"I hope that you found our little excursion to be enjoyable," the Doctor said.

"It was...amazing!" Kendra exclaimed. "Just...just incredible!" Cassie simply smiled and nodded in agreement.

"I'm glad you thought so," the Doctor replied. "Now, we should be going. I'm sure Cassie is eager to see to her father, am I right?"

"Yeah," Cassie told him. "I'm not sure what I'm going to tell him. There's no way he'd ever believe it." She paused. "I'm not even really sure if I believe it."

"You don't have to say anything you feel uncomfortable with," the Doctor assured her. "But he is your father, and he does have a right to know what you're doing."

Cassie nodded and tried to think about what she was going to say when she saw him. Even so, whenever her mind wandered back to where she had just been, she couldn't keep the smile off her face. She would never forget the TARDIS floor coming to a stop, the noise of the machinery dying down, and the Doctor simply gesturing towards the door with that knowing smile on his face. Cassie had opened the door, then, and could hardly believe it when she saw the glittering purple sand, the brilliant jade ocean, and the soft ruby sky, the very same beach the Doctor had shown her in her mind just hours before! Slowly, she and Kendra had stepped out onto the sand and looked around. Not a single building, nor even another soul, was in sight. It was a paradise completely untouched by civilization.

After a few moments, the Doctor had stepped out behind them and proudly explained that they were on the Amethyst Sands of Arcadia, a region preserved for its beauty by the planet's benevolent rulers for thousands of years. The waiting list for those wishing to visit the Sands was years long, as attendance was restricted to a few months of the year and in limited numbers to reduce the impact. An entire caste of Arcadians lovingly tended the beaches and forests all year round, removing even the most microscopic traces of pollution and visitation with almost religious devotion.

It had been well past mid-morning and Cassie had begun to feel the tropical heat through her winter clothing. Just as she had shrugged off her jacket, though, the Doctor had ushered them back inside the TARDIS and directed them toward a wardrobe for something "a bit more comfortable". There were hundreds of different swimsuits and summer wear available, in a wide variety of styles and fabrics, many of which Cassie had never seen before and others she was certain could not be found on Earth. Interestingly, though, they all appeared to be her size. Cassie wondered if the Doctor had somehow conjured all of these clothes from nowhere just for her, or if he simply kept rooms filled with the same dizzying selection of attire all in different sizes for whomever happened to come along. Eventually, she had selected a simple one-piece swimsuit and a lightweight cotton dress, along with a pair of sandals, and headed back outside. Kendra was already there, jogging towards the surf, while the Doctor stood some distance away. He had taken off his jacket and boots, standing barefoot in the sand with his sleeves and cuffs rolled up. A large easel and canvas were set up in front of him, and next to him Cassie saw a small bag filled with brushes and painting supplies. She had walked towards him, but he gently shooed her away as he had set about sharpening a thick charcoal pencil.

She and Kendra had swam for hours, first in one place, and then another as they came back onto the beach and ran off to try another spot. A small island surrounded by reefs stood a short distance away from the shoreline, so they had swam out to it, using it as a base as they dived down beneath the surface to explore the coral. The water didn't sting her eyes as much as Cassie thought it would, and there was no sediment blocking her view, so she could get up close and investigate the reef with almost perfect clarity. Large schools of tiny multicolored fish had swam past them, brushing against their arms and legs as they passed, and the reefs themselves were almost crystalline, seeming to glow with their own inner light.

Finally, she and Kendra had emerged from the water and headed back toward the TARDIS. The late afternoon sun was beginning to descend toward the distant horizon of the ocean, reflecting off the water in a jeweled landscape. The Doctor was sitting on a large blanket next to a picnic basket, polishing an apple against his shirt as they walked up the beach toward him. The painting and all of his supplies were nowhere in sight. He had gestured toward a place on the blanket and the girls collapsed onto it, the exhaustion of the day and most of the previous night finally hitting home. He then had opened up the basket and revealed an entire banquet filling it up to the brim: Thick, cold roast beef sandwiches, fried chicken, bunches of grapes, apples, and chilled sodas and bottled water perspiring with condensation. They had dug in eagerly before finally sitting back to watch the sunset. Even as the sun dipped below the horizon, the sky had lit up with stars of such glittering intensity that it seemed as though someone had taken great handfuls of diamonds and strewn them about on an inky canvas. They had been so clear and so bright that Cassie had closed her eyes for just a moment to shield them from the glare.

When she had opened them again, she was inside TARDIS, in the Doctor's arms as he carried her across the control room. His grip was firm and she had felt so light and comfortable that she couldn't bring herself to offer any protest. It reminded her of the times her father had carried her to bed the exact same way when she was little, so much so that she had closed her eyes and pretended drift off again so she could savour that feeling. Moments later, the Doctor had eased her into an overstuffed lounge chair, slipping off her sandals before lifting her legs onto a cushioned footrest and draping his jacket over her. Peeking through a cracked eyelid, she saw the Doctor head back outside and carry Kendra back in in the exact same way, setting her in another chair near the fireplace. The Doctor had stopped then, looking at each of them in turn with a kind of sad smile on his face before finally turning toward the control console. Almost immediately she felt the TARDIS lurch into motion, though after that first movement the floor was perfectly smooth. The mechanical wheezing and groaning from the console itself also seemed less violent than before, as though the Doctor had decided to make their return trip nice and easy. For awhile Cassie had tried to stay awake, afraid to miss something even more interesting, but the muted rhythmic wheezing, the low droning hum of the console, and the fire's warm crackling conspired against her, and her eyelids eased closed as though dragged by lead weights.

She had been awakened by the floor lurching into place again. The wheezing sounds were gone, so she guessed that they had landed. Several feet away, Kendra had sat up and stretched in her chair, looking around.

"Home sweet home," the Doctor had said simply. Still half-asleep, wondering if the whole trip had been a dream or if she were dreaming still, she and Kendra had padded off to the wardrobe to change. Cassie was only somewhat surprised to find her clothes neatly folded in a small pile, everything pressed and laundered. Unfolding her pants, though, she saw that the worn and threadbare cuffs had been repaired. She looked closer at them, and at a spot on the right hip where she knew there had been a small tear, but that was gone, too. Not just stitched or mended, but made like new as if the damage had never been. Smiling just a little at the bit of magic at work, she pulled on her clothes and headed back to the control room where the Doctor had ushered her and Kendra outside, into the exact same alley where they had left from. The sun was rising, but her breath still fogged in the morning air, such a stark difference from a few hours ago that she shivered and zipped up her jacket to her neck.

"But what am I supposed to tell my parents?" Kendra asked. "They'll kill me for running out in the middle of the night like that."

"Well, we can't have that, can we?" the Doctor replied. He reached inside his pocket and pulled out the psychic paper billfold, handing it over. "Just use this. Mind you, using it to get girls out of trouble with their parents isn't something I make a habit of, but I don't like the idea of someone being grounded for showing initiative. It would make me a hypocrite."

"Thanks," Kendra said brightly, pocketing the billfold. Her face faltered. "What should I make it say, though?"

"You're a clever girl, Kendra," the Doctor answered, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm sure you'll think of something. We'll be along in awhile after Cassie here pays a visit with her father."

"Sure," Kendra said. She stepped forward and stood on her toes to give the Doctor a quick kiss on the cheek before wrapping him in a hug. "Thank you so much for taking us there. It was the most beautiful place I've ever seen."

The Doctor laughed. "It was my pleasure."

Kendra waved goodbye to the Doctor and Cassie before heading off down the road. Once she was out of sight, the Doctor gestured for Cassie to step back inside the TARDIS.

"Aren't we going to the hospital?" Cassie asked.

"Oh, yes. We're just taking a shortcut, is all," the Doctor answered, maneuvering switches and dials into position.

A thought occurred to Cassie. "Couldn't we have just taken Kendra back home directly? Maybe a few minutes after she left?"

"Absolutely. But crossing timelines like that is usually more trouble than it's worth. Besides, a little adversity would do her some good. Builds character, exercises the imagination, that sort of thing," the Doctor said, grinning.

"That's just mean," Cassie told him, though she couldn't help but smile herself. Despite the psychic paper and whatever excuse Kendra gleaned from it, the resulting conversation with her parents was bound to be less than pleasant.

The Doctor threw a lever and sent the TARDIS into motion with the now-familiar wheezing and groaning of its engines. A few moments later, he triggered another control and Cassie felt the TARIDS settle into place. Cassie stepped outside and was attacked almost immediately by a tangle of collapsing mops and brooms.

"You landed us in a janitor's closet," Cassie complained after tossing the mess aside.

"Well, I couldn't very well land in the lobby, now could I?" the Doctor replied, stepping out beside her. "Tell you what. Next time you can pick the landing spot and deal with all the questions."

"'Next time'? You mean...you want me to come with you?"

The Doctor was quiet for a long moment. "That's entirely up to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Out of all the people I've ever met, only a very few have all the qualities I look for in a traveling companion: Cleverness, an appreciation for new experiences, and a sense of responsibility, just to name a few. You have all of those gifts, and I would be honored to have you, but it's not a decision that I can make for you. Do you understand?"

Cassie nodded. "I think so."

"Do you want to come with me?" the Doctor asked her.

Cassie thought about it. There were so many reasons for either side of that decision. She didn't want to leave behind her friends and family, especially after what just happened. And yet, the thought of doing home and doing nothing didn't appeal to her at all. For the past few years, home had meant abuse and hardship. All in all, Cassie didn't want to go home but she didn't want to stay here.

"Can I have awhile to think about it?" she asked.

The Doctor nodded, giving her comforting smile. "All the time you need."

They found a nurse's station which quickly directed them to Kyle's room down the hall. Cassie knocked gently on the door and stepped inside while the Doctor took a seat on a bench just outside. Kyle was asleep, with various cords and tubes running across his body, each connected to a separate device. Sammy was there, sitting in a chair at his dad's bedside. He looked up at Cassie as she entered and stood, running over and hugging her tightly before finally letting go.

"How is he?" Cassie asked quietly.

"I dunno," Sammy replied. "The doctor said it wasn't as bad as it could've been, but he said that they'd probably have to operate or something later on."

Cassie took a look at the clipboard posted against the wall, which held all of the patient's diagnoses and vital signs. She had gone very well in her medical terminology courses, but much of the jargon was still beyond her. Most of what she could gather was that he had several broken ribs, a great deal of internal bruising and trauma, and possibly a damaged kidney, which was most likely what they'd be operating on to investigate further.

"Hey there, kiddo," came a weak voice from behind her.

Cassie turned and saw her dad awake and looking at her with bloodshot eyes. Despite the swelling across his face, he managed a small smile and beckoned her closer.

"I'm sorry, daddy, I didn't mean to wake you up," Cassie apologized as she moved to her father's side.

"That's all right. Can't really sleep with all these machines here, anyway. Too much damn beeping."

"Well," Cassie said, laughing a bit through welling tears. "If they stopped beeping, you'd probably be getting more sleep than you bargained for, right?"

"Yeah, you got a point there," Kyle admitted. Nearby, Sammy stifled a yawn. Cassie realized that he must have been awake all night watching over their dad. Kyle tilted his head toward Sammy. "Hey, kid, why don't you go get yourself a soda while I talk to your sister for a minute, okay?"

"Sure, dad," Sammy said reluctantly, giving him and Cassie one last glance before stepping outside.

"How are you feeling?" Cassie asked.

"Like I just got ran over by a bulldozer," Kyle told her. "Twice."

They both sat in quiet for almost a minute before Cassie finally asked, "Why did you do it?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...," Cassie trailed off, not quite knowing how to explain. "I mean you could've ran, or something. You didn't have to stay there and fight like you did."

"Yeah," Kyle said in a husky voice. "Yeah, I did."

Kyle lifted a trembling hand toward Cassie and rested it on top of her own.

"Listen," he began, sounding uncomfortable. "I haven't been the best...hell, I haven't been a good father at all since your mom died. Ever since then I just didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to take your mom's place, and with my leg busted up, I could barely handle taking care of myself. I didn't know how to be a dad on my own, so I started treating you guys like my old platoon, just shouting and giving orders to get things done." Tears were welling up in his eyes.

"Dad, you don't have to-"

"Yeah, I do. Just listen, okay? The worst thing..." he trailed off, sighing heavily before finally continuing. "The worst thing was what I did to you. I just missed your mom so much and, you know, you look so much like her when she was younger. I get to drinking a lot and somewhere in my head things start getting mixed up. I bet there's been a few times when you've been pretty afraid of me, huh?"

Cassie trembled, not knowing how to answer and not trusting herself to speak. Kyle simply nodded.

"Yeah, I know it. The worst part of what I did is that you had to start taking care of your deadbeat dad instead of the other way around. Taking on all that responsibility, probably being tired and scared and angry all the time trying to keep things normal. I'm just so-" he broke off, choking back a sudden sob. "I'm so sorry that you had to do all that," he pressed on as tears fell down his face.

Cassie stood and leaned forward in a tight embrace. Both of Kyle's arms, heedless of the needles and tubes, reached out and pulled her close, as if she might fly away. They stayed that way in quiet for a long time before Kyle finally let her go, reaching for a nearby box of tissues and handing them to his daughter.

"The docs say it's gonna be awhile before I get out of here. A lot of tests and stuff they want to run, just to be safe," Kyle said, louder and more confident than he had been. More tired, also, as if confessing what he had done had taken every bit of his strength to accomplish.

"I looked at your chart," Cassie replied, grateful for the chance to talk about something more mundane, father to daughter. "It says that they want to do another operation to look at one of your kidneys for damage."

Kyle grunted. "All the damage I've done to my own kidneys, a little thing like bruises won't hurt them none."

"Dad..." Cassie began.

"What is it?"

"It's just...the man who helped me earlier..."

"What about him?" Kyle asked.

"Well...he's a traveler and he wants me to go with him," she blurted out. "It's a scholarship travel program that he's accepted me to."

"A science teacher with a ray gun wants to take you around the world? This just keeps getting better," Kyle chuckled ruefully.

"It's just that-"

"You don't want to leave me alone, right?"

"That's part of it, yeah," Cassie nodded.

"It sounds to me like there's a bit more to Mr. Smith than you're telling me, right?" Kyle pressed.

Cassie nodded hesitantly.

"I suppose I can understand that." Kyle sighed. "Listen, the past few years you've missed out on a lot because of me. A girl with brains like yours, you could be applying for all kinds of scholarships by now, getting read to go to some fancy college across the country. Now, when I get out of here, things are gonna be different. Better, I promise. But I think you've given up enough because of me and if this is something you want to do, then you should do it."

Cassie was stunned. "Don't you want to know more about who he is?"

"A man's gotta have some secrets, I figure. He saved my life and yours. That buys a lot of trust, in my book. If he has his secrets, I'm betting there's a good reason for it, and a good reason you're keeping them for him, am I right? Now, when you want to tell me about it, I'll listen, but as long as he keeps my little girl safe, he's a good man by me."

Cassie leaned down to hug him again. "Thank you, daddy."

A nurse poked her head in through the open door. "Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Jacobs, but the doctor will be here in just a minute for your checkup."

"That's just fine, thank you," Kyle replied. To Cassie, he said, "You better get going. Some crackpot's gonna come in poking and prodding and there's no reason for both of us to be bored to tears because of it."

"Okay, daddy. Goodbye," she said, lingering a moment by the door.

"Goodbye, hon. Take care, now," Kyle answered.

Cassie stepped back into the hallway and was surprised to see Sammy sitting on the bench just outside. The Doctor was sitting next to him, talking quietly with a hand on his shoulder. She didn't hear what he was saying, but when he stopped she could see Sammy's head nodding slowly. Sammy stood and headed off toward the vending machines while the Doctor rose and turned to Cassie.

"What were you two talking about?" Cassie asked, curious.

"Nothing much," the Doctor replied. "Just told him some things I thought he needed to hear."

"Doctor?"

He turned to look at her. "Yes?"

"I'd like to come with you."

He didn't answer right away, only looked her in the eye for several long moments before finally replying, "Okay."

A minute later, Sammy came back with not one soda, but three, two of which he handed to his sister and the Doctor. They talked for awhile after that, mostly about practical matters. Cassie told him that she was going to be leaving on a scholarship trip, and since Dad wouldn't be out of the hospital for at least a week, Sammy needed a place to stay. Sammy protested, saying he was old enough to take care of himself for awhile, but relented when Cassie pointed out that their grocery situation was already low and as much as he wanted to, he couldn't afford to be eating fast food or pizza every day. Sammy finally relented and said that he would call around and see if he could stay with one of his friends for the time being. The Doctor shifted in place, looking like he wanted to say something, but kept quiet. As they spoke, a white-coated doctor and a pair of assistants slipped into Kyle's room. Cassie told Sammy that they'd probably be there for quite awhile and that he should go home, take a nap, and pack a bag or two. Sammy bristled at the suggestion that he needed a nap, but grudgingly nodded. To Cassie's amazement, he stepped forward and hugged her tightly, something he hadn't done in years. Over his head, she glanced at the Doctor, who simply looked on with a small smile. After a moment, he let go, gave a somewhat sheepish grin, and headed off.

"What exactly did you tell him?" Cassie asked as Sammy walked away, having acted more like the brother he'd been before their mother died then in all the years since.

"Like I said," the Doctor answered, putting a hand to her back and steering her back toward the broom cupboard where they'd left the TARDIS. "Just some things he needed to hear."

Cassie stepped outside the TARDIS and saw that they had landed just down the block from Kendra's house. She set out that way at once, while the Doctor kept a safe distance behind, obviously respectful of Kendra's parents' wishes that he not show himself again.

As she walked up the driveway, Kendra came out the front door and headed down to meet her.

"So how did it go?" Cassie asked.

"Pretty well, I think," Kendra admitted. "They were still pretty upset, but it probably wasn't as bad as it could have been."

"What did you end up telling them?" the Doctor asked, coming up from behind.

"The truth, mostly," Kendra shrugged. "You went off running, I followed, and found your place broken into."

"And they believed that?" Cassie asked.

"They did when I showed them the police report." Kendra grinned, reaching into her pocket and brandishing the psychic paper billfold.

"Well done. Glad to see you make good use of it," the Doctor said, reaching out and taking back the billfold.

"Are you sure I can't hold onto that for awhile?" Kendra asked. "It's almost the end of the semester and I bet I could make a really good report card out of that."

"A young lady as smart as you are shouldn't need psychic paper to get good grades," the Doctor chided. Kendra laughed at that.

"Anyway," the Doctor said, something in his voice capturing the girls' full attention.

"Kendra, you and Cassie have seen who I am and what I do. The outing to the Amethyst Sands was just a small sample of what I'm capable of giving you. You're both intelligent, clever, resourceful, and have a craving for something beyond the ordinary. Cassie has already accepted the chance to be a companion on my travels and I'm here to offer you the same opportunity."

Kendra was quiet for a long moment. "What would I tell my parents, though?"

"As much of the truth as you're comfortable with," the Doctor told her. "True, you could leave now and I could have you back five minutes from now, but they're the ones responsible for your safety, and I can't be the one to take that choice from them."

"Is what you do dangerous?" Kendra asked.

"I won't lie to you," he replied. "Oftentimes it can be. The universe has as many terrors as it does wonders and sometimes they can be one and the same. I can tell you that I would do everything in my power to keep you both safe, but I'll also tell you...that there have been times when that hasn't been enough."

"I don't know," Kendra said. "I mean, I want to. It sounds really exciting and all that, but...having to leave home and everything here behind. I don't know if I could..." she trailed off, uncertain.

The Doctor put both hands on her shoulders and kneeled down, looking into her eyes. "There's nothing to be ashamed of, Kendra. You don't want to leave your family and friends. There's nothing wrong with that. Traveling like I do isn't the kind of life suited for everyone."

"I'm sorry," Kendra said.

"Don't be. There have been people who've traveled with me who jumped at the opportunity at first but came to regret it. They were spoiled for normal life and couldn't adjust when the time came for them to come home. I'm glad that you're wise enough to know what you would be giving up by leaving."

Kendra grinned at that. "First time someone's ever called me wise."

"It's true," the Doctor told her. "It's a very mature decision for your age. And besides, it's not as though I won't come back once in awhile. Traveling in the long term may be a bit much to ask, but you won't say no to the occasional day trip, I think."

"Definitely not."

"Splendid!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Just a couple more things to take care of. Right now Cassie's younger brother is in need of a place to stay until his father returns from the hospital. I don't suppose you can ask if he can stay here for the time being?"

"Yeah," Kendra replied. "I don't think Mom and Dad will have any problem with that."

Beside the Doctor, Cassie slapped a hand to her face. "Why didn't I think of asking that?"

"And since you'll be staying behind..." the Doctor trailed off, closing his eyes in concentration.

Softly at first, then louder, Cassie heard the groaning of the TARDIS engine materializing. The Doctor stood calmly at her side, not at all concerned. She looked back down the block at where they left the TARDIS and there is was still, right where they left it. A light caught her eye and she looked up. There! In Kendra's bedroom window she saw the strobing pale blue light from the TARDIS's police box facade as it landed. A few moments later, the light began strobing again as the groaning engines activated once more, this time fading into the distance.

"Doctor, that was the TARDIS," Cassie told him, immediately feeling foolish for stating the obvious.

"Yes, yes it was," he replied, looking rather satisfied with himself.

"But how could it be there and over there at the same time? I thought you said you couldn't do that," Kendra remarked.

"Only if doing so results in the disruption of cause and effect," the Doctor explained, sounding like a lecturing professor as he did so. "The problem with encountering your own future self is that doing so will lead to you making decisions that you wouldn't otherwise have made. As those decisions can affect your future self, the circumstances of you meeting that same future self can change, which again will result in you making different decisions based on that meeting. And so on and so on. It's called a paradox and it can be a very serious breach of the laws of time travel."

Cassie pondered this for a moment. "Then that was your future self? Why was it there then?"

"Because before it appeared, I made the very firm decision that when we leave, the very first thing I'll do is materialize the TARDIS in Kendra's bedroom and then depart. Because I made the decision before my future self appeared, and there was no other interaction between the future me and the present me, none of my future decisions will be altered. The time line continues on unaltered."

"Isn't that dangerous, though?" Cassie asked.

"It can be." The Doctor nodded. "Only if you don't know what you're doing. The laws of time are ironclad and have existed for thousands of millennia for the preservation of the proper destiny of the universe. They cannot be broken at any time or for any reason, except in the most dire of emergencies." He grinned. "Or cheap tricks."

"But why did you appear in my bedroom in the first place?" Kendra asked.

"Since you won't be coming with us, I thought it only fair to give you something to remember this experience by."

"A present?" Kendra's face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. "You gave me a present?"

"I _will_ give you a present," the Doctor corrected. "And yes, I did."

"Oh, thank you!" Kendra exclaimed, standing on her tiptoes to give the Doctor a kiss on the cheek. "Whatever it is, I'll love it!"

"I know you will." The Doctor smiled down at her before turning to face Cassie. "And now I'm afraid it's time to say goodbye."

Cassie nodded slowly. It was going to be weird, not having Kendra with her. She was her best friend; they'd done almost everything together since grade school and now they were going to be apart. She felt her eyes begin to sting when Kendra walked up and put her arms around her, leaning forward and touching her forehead to hers.

"I'm gonna miss you," Cassie admitted.

"Me, too," Kendra replied. "But you know why you want to leave, right?

"Yeah." Cassie nodded slightly. The idea of _home_ had been a burden for the past three years. It had just been a place to sleep and keep her stuff, no more personal to her than the locker she used at school. With her dad's drunkenness and her brother's delinquency, it had been a place to be avoided. Home wasn't a place where she felt safe, but even so, it was a place she was tethered to. Anchored to, trying to do the best she could but always knowing it wasn't enough. And even after the epiphany her dad had experienced, it would still be a long time before she got used to the idea of home being a home again. Someday, she knew she would miss it, miss her dad and her brother enough to finally come back, but for now she wanted to be on her own, to see and experience the things she never would have had a chance to otherwise. To be _away_.

"It's not like you'll be away forever," Kendra continued. "It'll be like summer camp or something, but with a big blue box."

Cassie laughed, feeling better already.

"I'll take lots of pictures for you for when I get back," Cassie promised.

"Yeah, you better," Kendra teased. She pulled Cassie close and, despite what she had said, Cassie felt a tear run down the back of her neck before she finally let go and stepped back.

The Doctor stepped in, nearly picking Kendra up off the ground in a tight bear hug. "Goodbye, Kendra."

"Bye, Doctor. Thanks for everything," she whispered back before he finally set her down.

The three of them simply looked at each other for a long moment before the Doctor turned and led Cassie back towards the waiting TARDIS. Kendra waited on the driveway, watching them leave.

The Doctor was just beginning to unlock the TARDIS door when Cassie heard Kendra shout at her, "Try not to think about how those pants make his package look!"

To her horror, that was the first thing she visualized. "Gross!" she shouted back. Several houses away, Kendra only laughed and waved. The Doctor wisely said nothing, though Cassie caught the smirk on his face just fine.

"Go ahead and have a seat," the Doctor said, gesturing to one of the many lounge chairs while he headed to the control console. "We just have to make our quick side trip, first." He threw back a lever and the ground shuddered as the TARDIS was sent into motion.

Outside, Kendra watched as the TARDIS flashed and wheezed, fading in and out of sight before vanishing completely. Only then did she start back inside the house. Her step hurried when she remembered that the Doctor had left something behind for her.

Kendra rushed into her bedroom and saw a long, narrow package resting on her bed, wrapped with paper and twine. She undid the knots and carefully unwrapped it, revealing a large painting. It only took her a few moments to realize that it was the very same painting the Doctor was working on during their visit to the Amethyst Sands. It had a classical look to it, painted in oils and masterfully done, portraying a landscape with the same purple beaches, jade waters, and ruby sky that they had visited only hours before. A small island with lush foliage was visible in the distance, and there, tiny but distinctive, were two girls, one with black hair and the other with blond, splashing each other in the surf. The entire canvas as bound in an ornately carved wooden frame just as intricate as the painting itself. And in the corner, in tiny script, still glistening as though added only minutes ago:

_To Kendra_

_From The Doctor_

_"You Are Always Welcome"_

**END OF ACT ONE**


	7. Chapter 7

"So, Doctor," Cassie began as she walked along the bookshelves, glancing at random titles. "Just how big is this ship, anyway?"

"Why do you ask?" the Doctor replied, making his rounds around the console, idly flipping switches and turning dials to set the TARDIS on course."

Cassie shrugged. "Just curious. I mean, if the mass of everything on the inside doesn't register on the outside, then in theory there could be infinite space, right?"

The Doctor looked at her approvingly. "Very good. And not too far off the mark. It's not so much a matter of available space as it is available and potential energy to be converted into space. Different functions take different amounts of that energy, and the layout itself is malleable." The Doctor thought for a moment. "Well, adding together the console room, the wardrobes which you've seen already, living quarters, maintenance alcoves, storage rooms, the wine cellar-"

"You have a wine cellar?" Cassie interrupted.

"Several," the Doctor replied. "Let's see, what else? Swimming pool, gardens, galleries, libraries, and...well...everything else, I'd say it comes to a few cubic miles or so."

"Or so?" Cassie said flatly.

"Like I said, it all depends on the energy available. Matter/energy conversion is probably the least complicated function the TARDIS performs. If I power down a few nonessential systems, I could possibly double that. Not that I'd ever likely use it all. It's hard enough finding things in here as it is."

"What kind of galleries? Like, for paintings?" Cassie asked, her interest piqued.

"Yes, actually. It's something of a hobby of mine. Track down lost works of art to the point where history declared them lost and then rescue them."

"You don't mean stealing, do you?"

"Heavens no." The Doctor looked almost offended by the very thought. "Paintings lost in gallery fires, sculptures smashed beyond repair, that sort of thing. At the point where they would be lost forever, I show up when nobody's looking and whisk it away. To all the universe, they no longer exist and history continues on unaffected, but those works live on. They deserve not to be forgotten, at least by someone."

Cassie nodded, accepting the explanation for what it was. "Do you think it would be okay if I could see them?"

"Of course! Nothing would make me happier." The Doctor flashed her a grin before something on the pull-down monitor caught his attention. He frowned and stabbed at a few controls but still did not seem satisfied.

"Seems there's a bit of turbulence in the time vortex. It's making it difficult to lay in a proper automatic course," the Doctor explained. "Tell you what, though. How about you go and have a look around for awhile? We should be there in about an hour, so I'll come get you when we've arrived."

"Sounds good to me," Cassie replied. She headed for the open doorway when she turned back. "I won't get lost or anything, will I?"

"Of course not." The Doctor sounded amused. "The TARDIS will steer you clear of anything dangerous. Just go ahead and go. Explore. Open some doors at random and see where they take you."

With one last look at the Doctor, his attention now focused on the controls in front of him, Cassie turned and walked through the doorway. Doing as the Doctor suggested, she set off with no particular destination in mind. There was no hurry; she moved slowly down the hallway, taking in the scenery as she went. As in the control room, the floors were a rich, dark wood, framed by walls of polished granite. Though there were no windows or lights that she could see, the halls were nonetheless easy to navigate. Every so often she saw a torch mounted into a scone in the wall, or a stand of candlesticks, each burning with flickering orange light, casting shadows and banishing darkness from halls that were never truly dark.

The long hallway she had been walking down ended, and Cassie found herself in a large, enclosed courtyard. The ceiling extended several stories into the air, while the walls at the highest points were lined with massive windows, letting in what Cassie guessed must have been artificial sunlight. A large staircase on each side of the yard led up to a balcony that circled the expanse of the yard, but what caught Cassie's attention most was the waterfall. Built into the side of the wall beneath the balcony, the water cascaded down over two dozen feet into a large pool at its base, a series of protruding stones dissipating the water into a fine mist that glittered in the sunlight. A small brook, built into the floor itself, weaved from the pool, back and forth across the courtyard as naturally as any stream before draining into a small culvert at the base of the wall. Though the brook was only two or three feet across at most, a series of wooden footbridges provided easy access to the entire room. Near where Cassie was standing stood a large expanse of white sand, easily ten feet to a side and lined with polished stones. Nearby rested a series of wooden rakes and a small table clutted with smooth stones of various shapes and colors, along with a stack of books and some kind of handheld computer.

Walking across one bend in the stream, Cassie saw an enormous table on the opposite end of the yard, every inch covered with complicated and delicate-looking glass tubes and fixtures that reminded her of a high school chemistry set, though on a scale she'd never seen before. The whole room, with the sunlight and the brook's gentle murmering, gave a feeling of serenity, though the cluttered books and tubes suggested it was used just as often for work as for relaxation.

Climbing up to the balcony and pressing on through another door, Cassie found another room just as impressive as the one she'd just left. A small slow-moving canal, the source of the waterfall in the courtyard, cut through the middle of a wide hallway. On either bank, beyond a small walkway barely wide enough for one person, were massive shelves of books stretching over ten feet high. Wheeled ladders mounted on brackets provided access to the uppermost shelves. There was even a small gondola tethered to one side of the canal. Up ahead, Cassie could see branches in the canal leading off in different directions. Unlike the well-lit courtyard, sunlight here came only from narrow windows near the ceiling, reflecting off the water and casting a blue-green glow. Cassie's well-worn tennis shoes echoed loudly on the stone walkway and she found herself lightening her tread. The library struck her as eerie, yet strangely compelling, as though the room were a labrynth holding some precious treasure within, but had been built underwater and could flood at any moment.

Moving along the walkway, Cassie walked slowly along the edges of the canal's many branches until finding another door she decided to pass through. This time, she found herself at the top of a winding ramp, wide enough for ten people to walk side by side and spiraling down for many stories. The canal drain near the door led to a large waterfall that cascaded down the empty space in the middle of the ramp's spiral. An enormous window set directly above focused the sunlight down on the water like a pillar, refracting off the water into thousands of tiny rainbows.

Hundreds of paintings of every size, subject, and style lined almost every free inch of the wall. As she followed the ramp slowly downwards, Cassie could not see any similarity between them other than that the Doctor found them worth preserving. A couple that she passed almost seemed to glow in the diffuse sunlight, and one otherwise unremarkable picture seemed to radiate heat as she passed close to it.

Eventually, Cassie reached the bottom level and, after rounding the stone pool and giggling a bit at the cherub fountains lining its edge, headed out through another door. What she saw there stopped her dead in her tracks.

Compared to the beautiful sculpture and design of the rest of the TARDIS, this room seemed downright spartan. Polished marble floors and high vaulted ceilings, along with hundreds of silver display cases along the walls and set randomly across the floor, made the room feel like a modern day museum. Cassie stepped forward and examined a few of the cases. There were no labels, and many of the objects within defied any categorization she could think of. A tuft of grass, a stuffed animal, a scroll, a feather tipped in silver for use as a quill, and a signet ring; all these and more were stored under glass or encased in crystal, all lovingly preserved.

She moved toward the walls and saw that these cases all contained pictures. Nowhere near the size and majesty of the paintings she had seen elsewhere, but all set on display like priceless treasures. Most of those she saw were photographs of almost lifelike quality, showing a man with brown hair combed back and curling above his shoulders. As she continued walking, she saw other pictures of the same man at varying points in his life: A young man smiling proudly while wearing orange robes and a strange headdress; a child, no older than eight or nine, staring enraptured into some kind of swirling purple vortex mounted in a frame like a stand-up mirror; a serious-looking man in his middle ages, brown hair now laced with silver, wearing his orange robes, now much more intricately embroidered, and shaking hands with a smiling old man holding an ornate golden staff and wearing robes of brilliant white; and an old man, hair now completely white but looking happier than in any of the previous pictures, a fey gleam in his eyes, dressed in chequered pants and black jacket, and his arm around the waist of a grinning young woman in her late teens, with short black hair, tight-fitting black pants, and an oversized tunic tucked into her waistband. Next to that last photo stood a pair of certificates, handwritten with such ornate calligraphy that Cassie could barely read them; they looked like diplomas. The name 'Susan Foreman' was written on one, while the name on the other, appearing far older, faded with slight tears at the edges, was indecipherable, though whether that was because of the penmanship or smudging of the ink, she couldn't be sure of.

Beyond that, in the middle of the floor, Cassie saw the orange robes the man had been wearing draped around a mannequin encased in glass; next to it was a mannequin wearing the outfit she had seen the man wearing in the last photograph. Past that point, she saw that the displays continued, though they were now polished brass. The first object that caught her attention was a small metal penlight; just beyond that stood a recorder, chipped and faded. The pictures continued as before, though now the main object was a middle-aged man in a rumpled suit and a slightly ridiculous bowl cut. Many of the pictures with him featured a short-haired man wearing a tight black turtleneck, a smug-looking young woman in a glittering minidress, and an earnest man with reddish-brown hair and a kilt. The pictures were less lifelike, yet more realistic, as though taken from an actual camera and not a perfect memory engraved on paper. As before, the displays ended with a mannequin draped in the man's rumpled suit, the type of outfit he wore in most of the pictures, before continuing on, the cases this time tinged in red.

Dominating this collection was an old-fashioned yellow jalopy, perfectly waxed and restored, resting on a platform above the other displays. The pictures were now mixed with rough sketches of faces, buildings, and other objects of note.

The next hall was perhaps the largest yet. They featured a tall man with an easy smile, wearing high leather boots, a long tweed jacket, and an absurdly long scarf. The collection of pictures, this time with the sketches replaced by brightly-hued watercolors, had a wide variety of people standing beside him or on their own. Several dozen pictures, all grouped together, displayed the man alongside a petite young woman with long, strawberry blond hair. Cassie laughed when she saw one large photograph with the pair. The man was smiling broadly, his arm around the woman's shoulder while both her arms stretched around his waist. He wore the same outfit as before, but what made Cassie laugh was that the woman was wearing much the same thing, a long white coat and a white scarf laced with pink. Nearby, a small metal robot, less than two feet, tall, battered and dented, stood on a display case. The main body looked as though it moved on wheels beneath its base, but the protruding face looked almost like that of a dog. There was even a red leather collar draped around its neck.

After that, the next hall featured a young man with short blond hair, dressed in striped pants and a cream-colored jacket that he wore casually but which nonetheless looking almost like a uniform. There were very few pictures compared to the previous displays, but one large painting stood above the rest, featuring a young man in his late teens, with unruly brown hair and a red and yellow patchwork shirt decorated with what looked like a sheriff's star pinned on his chest. The size of the painting, and the way it stood, with a fair amount of open space before it, made it seem as though it were a memorial. A mannequin, as before, held the man's outfit, though the cream jacket was burnt and torn in places, and the white sweater beneath was smeared with ash and soot. A display case neck to the mannequin, set conscpicuously apart from the others, held an empty glass vial.

The next hall had very few displays, though the number of pictures it held more than made up for it. Almost all featured a grinning man with curling light-brown hair and a garish, clashing outfit that was hard to look at directly. With few exceptions he stood alone in those pictures, and even when he stood next to someone he tended to lean forward as though to dominate the frame.

The hall after that featured a middle-aged man with dark hair and somber features. The first few rows of pictures had him wearing a bright red-and-green sweater dotted with question marks, though that was soon replaced by a more tasteful maroon waistcoat. Unlike the menagerie of friends the previous halls had featured, this man's only held two: A tall woman with bright red hair and an expressive face, and a young woman not much older than Cassie herself, with a light-brown ponytail and a black leather jacket decorated with sewn-in patches. Walking past the displays, Cassie saw a featureless metal tube, punctured and set with a short fuse like a homemade bomb. Near the end, she saw a large picture with the man and the young girl standing next to each other. Both were dressed in flowing orange robes; the man's were lined with glittering medals and a brilliant white sash fringed in gold, while the girl's were without decoration and did not feature the stiff headdress of her counterpart. The man's face beamed like a proud father while the girl offered only an embarassed smile.

Cassie gasped slightly as she passed into the last hall and saw the Doctor smiling at her from a large photograph of himself, standing in between a blond woman in a white lab coat and a young asian man in black pants and a bright red windbreaker. What did that mean? Where the men displayed in all the previous halls friends of the Doctor? Family? Maybe a line of descendants? None of them looked anything alike, though, other than their odd taste in clothes.

Directly below the first picture was a State of California death certificate, made out on December 31, 1999 for a Mr. John Smith, signed by a Dr. Holloway and co-signed by a Dr. John Bowman. Cassie raised an eyebrow when she saw the Doctor's assumed name written there, complete with a little smiley face next to the signature.

Almost immediately after, there was a long series of photos featuring the Doctor and a blond girl maybe a few years older than Cassie herself. Her constant smile, bright clothes, and all-american demeanor reminded her of Kendra. A perpetually unshaven man in his mid twenties, wearing a worn leather jacket and an easy grin, soon became a constant subject. And on and on it went. Of all the halls so far, this one had by far the most people coming and going: A mocha-skinned, professional looking girl in a lavender pantsuit; a dark-haired woman in her thirties with a dirty face and worn travelling clothes, a plain-looking woman with coppery-red hair and a perpetually annoyed look on her face, and dozens more.

Almost all of the subjects in the photos were also featured in large portraits spaced high along the walls, all painted with oils in a classical style that reminded Cassie of the landscape painting he had done of the Amethyst Sands. He must have painted all these, she realized. Every one of the Doctor's friends had been given a place of honor along these walls. Many of the people within were in formal dress; gowns or suits, reflecting a sort of nobility the Doctor had seen within them. Comparing the paintings to the photographs below, she could see the difference in how they were reflected: A blemish subtly removed, the softening of a frown, a glimmer in the corner of an eye. One by one, the Doctor's brush had made them better than they were before.

Cassie had just finished looking at a photograph of the Doctor standing next to a young woman, blond, with a denim jacket and a mischievous grin when she looked around and saw nothing else beyond. Though the gallery itself continued, there were no further exhibits on display, no more pictures. The displays stood empty, standing in the darkness where the lights had ceased to function.

"I see you've found my museum, then!" A booming voice echoed from behind her. Cassie turned and saw the Doctor walking briskly toward her.

"Your museum?" Cassie asked.

"Yes," the Doctor replied, coming to a stop before her. He waved a hand encompassing the entire hall. "Everything here, everything you see, I've collected on my travels. I keep them close as memories of what's come before. Which leads me to it's given name: The Hall of Memory."

The Doctor laughed softly as he reached over and placed his hand on a display of tiny round stones, each polished and etched with complex designs. "These were given to me by the Patriarch of Orbis, oh, years ago. Holy relics, he called them." His eyes lowered. "I never learned why," he said softly, his voice tinged with regret.

Cassie wanted to press further, but the memory was clearly a bad one for the Doctor. "Who are all these people with you?" Cassie asked instead, indicated the long rows of pictures.

The Doctor gave her a gentle smile. "They're like you. All friends and companions who've travelled with me at one point or another."

"There's so many, though..." Cassie trailed off. "I mean, I know you said you were old and that, but...where did they all go?"

The Doctor's smile dropped a little.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" Cassie blurted out, seeing that she had hit a soft spot.

"No, no," the Doctor waved her off. "Everyone leaves, sooner or later. Because they have to, or because they should. They leave on some new adventure. Find some new cause to work toward. Fall in love. Or fall out of it." The Doctor shrugged. "They grow up."

They turned and began walking back toward the entrance.

"What about all these other galleries?"

The Doctor turned toward her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, this whole hall has just pictures of you, along with all these paintings you did. But these ones all the way back have completely different people. Are they friends of yours?"

"Sometimes, but not as often as I would like." The Doctor lingered a moment near the death certificate Cassie had seen earlier. "In a sense, they are all me."

Cassie was quiet for a long moment. "All you?" she asked. "Like, reincarnation?"

"Reincarnation actually isn't a bad way of looking at it. My people, the Time Lords, all have a way of cheating death. When our bodies are dying, we can regenerate. We live on, but in the process we change. Our bodies, our minds. Our personalities. Everything except the innermost core of who we are is altered. We live but it still feels like dying." The Doctor's voice grew quiet. "A new man with a new face walks away, and the man left behind is gone forever."

The Doctor inhaled, smiled, and focused again on Cassie. "But yes, aside from some minor disagreements, they are all me, and so for better or worse, their memories are my memories."

Cassie decided to change the subject. "So we've made it to wherever we're going?"

"Yes!" the Doctor replied, suddenly excited. "I've given this a lot of thought." He stopped in his tracks, turning to face Cassie and smiling infectiously. "For your first real trip, I thought long and hard where to take you. Out of tens of billions of possible galaxies and the entire lifespan of the universe..." The Doctor trailed off.

"Yes?" Cassie prodded.

"I've decided to take you..." He trailed off again, clearly enjoying himself.

"Yes?"

"To the most renowned, the most revered..."

"Yes?"

"The most highly recommended steakhouse in history!"

With a flourish, the Doctor turned and walked toward the exit, leaving a baffled Cassie standing in his wake.

"Steak?" she finally asked aloud.


	8. Chapter 8

"Doctor?" Cassie called out after catching up to him. "When you say 'steak, do you really mean-"

"A masterfully prepared cut of beef, seared just right to hold in the flavor and covered with a combination of herbs and spices not seen anywhere else in the known universe!" the Doctor proclaimed, moving with an extra spring in his step as he maneuvered through halls and doorways back toward the control room. "Served with a side of baked potato with butter and onions and chives and cream! And, if you like, there's also salad and a bread basket."

"That does sound good, I guess," Cassie admitted. "But is it really worth getting so excited over? I mean, there's got to be thousands of steakhouses to choose from on Earth. What makes this one so special?"

"The man who created it was a genius," the Doctor explained. "An absolute genius, but he never wanted to be famous like he could have been. He founded a small restaurant in an out of the way Chicago borough in the early 22nd century. It's been a family business for four generations now and is the best kept secret in the city."

"I guess I am pretty hungry," Cassie said, wincing slightly as the Doctor's loving descriptions brought a growl to her stomach. "All this jumping around the last few days, it's making it hard to tell when it's time to eat."

"I've been told it's a lot like jet lag," the Doctor replied airily. "It shouldn't take long to get used to." They reentered the control room, and the Doctor headed to the console and pulled back a large brake lever that sent the TARDIS shuddering to a halt.

"Regardless, this should make a good first visit for you," the Doctor continued. "Foreign, but not too foreign, and in your future, but not overly so."

"So is there a certain way I should act or anything?" Cassie asked. If she had any paper and a pencil handy, she would have had it ready to take notes on.

"No different than usual would be fine. We're still on Earth, after all. It'll be like visiting a different country; if you see anything that looks strange, just be respectful of it."

"Are you sure? I mean, I wouldn't want to stand out or anything." Cassie trailed off, clasping her hands in front of her and feeling very self-conscious as the Doctor turned to face her.

"A friend of mine," the Doctor began, stepping toward Cassie and resting a hand on her shoulder. "Once told me that there is nothing more suspicious than someone who doesn't belong trying to blend in. You can't blend into your surroundings, but if you look like you belong there, then your surroundings will blend into you. Relax! If you go out there looking as nervous and ill-at-ease as you are, of course people will think you're up to no good, but if you go out there and be proud, be confident, and smile at the wonder of it all, then all your obstacles will part before you."

The Doctor patted her on the shoulder and took a step back. "Now, let's see your best smile."

Cassie, blushing, took a deep breath and gave the Doctor a toothy grin, hoping it didn't look too cheesy.

The Doctor rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Close, but it needs something a little extra." He looked around conspiratorially before leaning in, as if to share a great secret. "Would it help if I told you I was wearing my favorite pink boxers?" he whispered.

Cassie burst out laughing despite herself as the Doctor stood back with a satisfied grin. "Ah, yes, the pink boxers never fail to amuse." He gestured toward the doorway. "Shall we?"

"You're terrible!" Cassie told him, still laughing.

"Nothing terrible about it," the Doctor assured her. "They're quite comfortable, in fact."

Cassie, wisely, decided not to comment, though the thought of the Doctor being perfectly content wearing pink made her giggle. They stepped outside the TARIDS doors into the middle of a large promenade along what must have been the Chicago shoreline. A chill breeze was blowing in from the lake, but the skies were mostly clear, the setting sun casting red outlines on the few clouds overhead. The promenade was busy, with people walking along the shorewalk or simply lingering on the tiny beach. Looking around, Cassie was surprised to see that the buildings and people were very close to what she remembered from home.

Despite the Doctor's assurances, Cassie had half expected to find things wildly futuristic, with gleaming chrome buildings laced with neon lights and layers of flying cars overhead like in a sci-fi movie. The buildings were certainly impressive, true, but seemed made of glass and metal like most big city structures. The cars she saw were planted firmly on the ground, though only a very few had tires, and those looked like antiques next to the others. Most seemed to glide along the road on some unseen cushion, a pale glow emanating from beneath the chassis. She was struck by the lack of noise: No engines, no screeching tires or brakes; they seemed to whisper as they passed like a soft breeze.

Likewise with the people around her. There was nothing so outlandish as robots or cybernetic implants or steampunk clothing. Many of the styles and fabrics struck her as strange, but not overly so. Everyone wore shirts and jackets, jeans, slacks, skirts, and dresses she would have expected anywhere else. A man walking by dialed at a hand held device with a stylus, which then projected a small holographic menu above his hand, which the man then manipulated with the stylus by stabbing at the air, shifting through screens with practiced ease.

A young couple glanced at the Doctor's forest green coat, black slacks, and old-fashioned waistcoat, but seemed to pay them no more attention than they did Cassie's own black jeans and purple turtleneck. The Doctor had offered her the full use of the TARDIS wardrobe, with ten thousand world's worth of socks alone, but she felt more comfortable with the clothes she brought with her for the time being. He had given her a bedroom just down the hall from the main control room, though she had been in there just long enough to set her duffel bag down and change before setting out to explore the rest of the TARDIS.

The room itself had been huge, almost the size of her entire house, with an enormous four poster bed on a slightly elevated platform in the middle of the floor. A large desk, cabinets, wardrobes, and other furniture lined the walls, with a door against the back wall leading to what the Doctor told her was her very own bathroom, complete with a bathtub set into the stone floor almost deep and wide enough to swim laps in. The bedroom's wooden floors, draped with rich carpets, and the polished stone walls, gave the rooms the feel of a princess' chambers in some faraway tower. The luxury of it made Cassie feel uncomfortable, as if someone would come along at any moment to accuse her of trespass and presumption. Out of curiosity, though, she had dared a quick glance into one of the wardrobes and found a wide selection of clothing, from familiar blouses and sweaters all the way to an embroidered gown made of a material so soft and light she might have wrapped the whole thing around her fingertip or pressed it into her palm like a pingpong ball. The little girl in her wanted to try it on right then and there, but Cassie instead closed the wardrobe and changed into a more familiar outfit from her own bag. The Doctor had already done so much for her, she didn't want to be thought of as taking advantage of his hospitality.

"Not quite what you expected, is it?" the Doctor asked her. Cassie glanced over and saw him looking down at her with knowing eyes.

"It's weird," Cassie said. "There are a lot of things different, but so much is still the same."

"Very true." The Doctor gestured toward an intersection leading into the inner city. He and Cassie headed in that direction. "I've found that human civilization is very predictable that way. A city from a thousand years ago and one found ten thousand years in the future are different only in the technology and culture of those who live there. The very basic spirit and core of the city remains the same."

"What about farms and things like that?" Cassie asked.

"Oh, they're still around, in their own way. Enhanced livestock and computerized hydroponics have taken the place of scythes and sickles, but the same principles are there. The farmers of tomorrow may use genetics and science alongside their threshers, but they still take pride in the things they grow."

The Doctor led her down several blocks before turning into an otherwise unremarkable side street, where the crowds of people moving up and down the sidewalks dwindled to a mere handful. The Doctor weaved unhesitatingly through the back roads and narrow alleys, so far that Cassie began to wonder if he had gotten them lost, before he finally came to a halt.

"Here we are, then," he announced with a satisfied grin.

A few windows, dimly lit from within and barely visible from the lights in the alley itself, were the only thing separating the restaurant from the rest of the wall. They might even have belonged to the back room of some business on the other side of the building, as Cassie could not even see a door leading inside. It took her a moment to see a small staircase leading down from the alley into the building's foundations, draped with a black awning. A simple illuminated sign, reading 'George's, Est. 2107' in gold letters, was mounted on the wall near the staircase's descent. The entire layout seemed specifically designed to be ignored by passersby. On her own, Cassie herself would easily have passed it off as a bar or private club of some kind and moved on without a second glance. The owners must have preferred their restaurant to have an intimate clientèle to have placed it so intentionally out of the way of casual traffic. The best kept secret in Chicago, as the Doctor put it, was starting to sound like a pretty good description.

The Doctor led her down the stairs and through a door. A tiny bell tinkled in the frame as they stepped inside. Booths with sumptuous leather cushions and oak tables lined the walls, with similar-looking chairs and tables spread across the floor, each lit with a small overhead lamp and a series of tiny candles on the tabletops. A large bar with a generous selection of bottles stood against the far wall, with a staircase leading up to the street level floor. It must have been a slow night even for them, as only a few of the tables were occupied at the moment, with one woman drinking alone at the bar. An older gentleman, wearing a sport coat over a lavender shirt, stepped from behind a podium to greet them.

"Good evening, sir and miss," he welcomed them both. "How may I serve you this evening?"

"Hello again, Dominic," the Doctor replied, reaching into his coat pocket and producing the leather billfold containing the psychic paper. "Doctor Smith and a guest, tonight."

Rather than the brief confusion Cassie had seen from others faced with the psychic paper, Dominic simply nodded, as though this were what he'd been expecting. "Of course, Doctor. Your usual table, I presume?"

"That would be agreeable," the Doctor nodded. They were quickly seated at a large booth in the corner as Dominic deftly removed a 'Reserved' placard from the table and handed each of them a menu encased in red leather. The Doctor ordered a glass of the house red, while Cassie, thinking that soda was probably not the most appropriate choice to ask for here, settled on ice water. The Doctor interjected, asking Dominic to bring his guest a white wine spritzer along with her water, ignoring Cassie's scandalized expression. Dominic nodded his understanding and quickly departed to fill their order.

"So after we leave here, where would you like to go next?" the Doctor asked, barely glancing at his menu before setting it aside. Cassie looked up from her own menu.

"I don't know," Cassie replied after a long moment. "I mean, there's got to be so much out there. I wouldn't even know where to start, honestly."

"It's not like I expect you to know proper names and dates," the Doctor told her teasingly. "I want to know what you like. What do you most want to see? Great works of art? We can visit the Dancing Gods: Statues carved from mountains over ten miles high, perfect in every detail. Natural wonders? We can see the endless waterfalls of Valorum, where falls a thousand miles wide cascade down through the center of the planet and rise again on the other side. Wondrous cities? We can tour the Nine Angels, an entire series of worlds joined with crystal rings, locked in orbit around their sun like a perfect halo, each one lit with cities of a different color like jewels in the night sky. All those and infinite others are there, just waiting to be seen. All waiting for you, there for the asking. Where would you like to start?"

It wasn't until the Doctor stopped talking that Cassie felt the smile that had spread across her face. She could almost see them in her mind's eye, these incredible sights the Doctor described. He had seen them before, that was obvious. But he was ready to go back at her word just for the pleasure of showing them to someone else.

"I want to see it all," she whispered.

The Doctor smiled with approval. "'All' might be difficult. I can't even claim to have seen most. But there's nothing stopping us from trying."

Dominic returned with their drinks. At a gesture from the Doctor, Cassie took an experimental sip of her spritzer, sniffing as the carbonated bubbles leaped from the glass to tickle her nose. It was bitter as she imagined it would be, but it left a sweet aftertaste in her mouth, like a honeycomb brushed with lemonade. The Doctor sipped at his wine and ordered the biggest prime rib available, made with the house recipe and with every side dish they could muster. After a moment's consideration, Cassie ordered the same, though in more modest portions.

Having ordered, the Doctor seemed downright gleeful, restless in his seat like a child eagerly awaiting an ice cream cone.

"It must've been a long time since you came here," Cassie observed.

"A few years," the Doctor replied. "It's only very occasionally that I actually sit down at a proper restaurant. Most of the time I stop by whatever happens to be around, or prepare something in the TARDIS kitchens."

"The TARDIS has a kitchen?" Cassie asked.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor said, taking another sip of his wine. "Quite an elaborate one, actually. But with my cooking skills, you might say it goes to waste. Besides which, it's much more interesting to experience the local cuisine instead of staying holed up on board eating sandwiches and the like."

Just then, Dominic returned, setting a basket of bread rolls on the table along with something else.

"Compliments of the woman at the bar," he said, setting a large glass in front of the Doctor, filled with a thick chocolate beverage, capped with whipped cream and a long, curving straw.

Cassie leaned in for a closer look. "A milkshake?" she asked, looking up at the Doctor, who was staring at the drink in some confusion. He turned toward the bar. Cassie followed his gaze to see the same woman who had been sitting there when they entered. She was petite, perhaps only a few inches taller than Cassie herself, though she looked to be in her early thirties, smartly dressed in a periwinkle blue pantsuit, with long, strawberry blond hair. As she watched, the woman turned in her stool and, smiling warmly, raised a glass to them in salute. Next to Cassie, the Doctor picked up the milkshake and raised it in turn before bringing the straw to his lips.

"Do you know her, Doctor?" Cassie asked, not sure if she believed it herself. It was more likely she was simply trying to pick up a handsome man in a quiet restaurant, but that explanation didn't quite ring true, either. Buying someone a milkshake out of the blue just wasn't something you did for a total stranger.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor answered. The woman rose from her seat and began walking toward their table. "She's a very old friend of mine."

The Doctor stood as the woman neared. He seemed almost reserved as he took the woman's hands in his before the woman, laughing with delight, leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the Doctor's neck. The Doctor, a smile crossing his face for the first time, nearly lifted her from the ground as he returned her embrace before finally setting her back down.

"It's been a long time, Doctor," the woman said teasingly.

"Much too long," he replied quietly, huskily, his voice filled with emotions Cassie couldn't begin to guess at. He gestured toward the table, and the woman slid onto the cushioned bench, sliding halfway towards Cassie to make room for the Doctor.

"Cassandra Jacobs," he began. "I'd like you to meet the lady Romanadvoratrelundar, Lady President of Gallifrey, Keeper of the Regalia of Rassilon, and such and so forth."

"Doctor, is this really how you introduce me to your friends?" She poked him in the side before turning to face Cassie. "Don't pay him any attention, dear. He thinks just because he turned down the job that everyone who accepts it must be dreary and corrupt, despite him knowing very well that I am neither. And please, call me Romana," she said, holding out her hand.

"Cassie," Cassie replied, taking the hand with her own.

How long had it been since he had taken on a new companion?

It wasn't a question the Doctor usually asked himself. It seemed at times that he gathered such people to him like trading cards, collecting, shuffling, and trading them away almost at random. Not that he didn't still see each new face as an opportunity nor regret the loss of those that departed, but he had grown used to traveling with an entourage. Sometimes one person, sometimes several. There was the time he took on a pair of twins, beautiful Brazilian gymnasts that turned heads wherever they went, whom he rescued from an unnatural explosion during a disastrous performance. Lovely and intelligent, they made for fast friends, though they scarcely realized the trouble they caused as they attracted men by the handful wherever they went! Every tour seemed to inevitably conclude with him making some hasty distraction so he could hustle the girls on board the TARDIS and depart with a minimum of awkward questions. The usual dangers he faced were almost preferable to dealing with some random drunkard who wouldn't take no for an answer.

But somewhere along the line, the entourage dwindled. Many had turned into one, and even that one had left him. Lucie was the last. A distant relative of hers, beloved since childhood, had turned out to be an alien refugee in disguise. The relative had died a peaceful death many years ago, while the alien slipped seamlessly into her life, friends and family suspecting nothing for decades until the Doctor stumbled upon her secret. For her sake, and for Lucie's, he had kept the charade intact. All was well until, as all deceptions are, the lie was discovered. Feeling hurt and betrayed, Lucie elected to stay behind on Earth rather that continue traveling with a man who had lied to her when she, jaded and suspicious as she had been, had trusted him completely. They parted amicably enough, Lucie promising to remember him for the good memories and adventures they shared rather than the one indiscretion.

But then the Doctor had surprised himself with how he reacted. Always before, he had parted with his friends with a fond farewell. Or wise words and advice. Or even heartfelt pleas to remain at his side, if only for a little while longer. But for the first time, he had simply walked away. Lucie had told him she intended to stay on Earth and given him her goodbyes, only for him to turn and leave without another word. Without even looking back. Until then, he hadn't thought himself capable of such callousness.

Was it callousness? Or hurt feelings, perhaps? Even now, he wasn't certain, and he had had years, decades, to think about it. He had apologized at the time, and that had seemed enough. It would certainly do no good to go back now and stir up lingering regrets. He had left her behind confidently, even brazenly. There was a whole universe of beings out there willing to share in his journeys. No reason to remain attached to any single one when he or she could be replaced. They always grew so familiar with him, so presumptive. So certain that they alone truly understood him.

It hadn't turned out that way, though. Having been surrounded by friends and fellows for so long, he had been certain that another promising soul would turn up in due course, able to appreciate the maelstrom of wonders he could offer. But one never did. He traveled all the same, but never saw anyone with the proper qualities. They were always not quite clever enough. Not curious enough. Or lethargic. Or jaded. Vulgar. Violent. Never quite suitable.

He stayed busy, telling himself that he could be more productive without someone chattering on like a Scarsil bird mimicking its masters for a snack of lug beetles. He tinkered with the TARDIS, redecorating some areas, rearranging others. The Valereans, eternally thankful for him clearing their islands of remnants of the Church of the Tin Vagabond, had offered the Doctor the services of their master woodshapers. Coaxing wood with words and songs, the woodshapers had swept through the TARDIS, replacing every board held with nails and screws with shaped wood, every piece grown from seedling to masterpiece almost overnight.

For a time he had tired of the many buttons and layers of his outfit and tried something more simple: A dark blue, double-breasted leather blazer that had caught his attention in a storefront window, along with a beaten canvas satchel he had found rummaging through one of the TARDIS storerooms. These he combined with slacks and a simple button-down shirt, and was quite pleased with the result. He even cut his hair short (well, _had_ it cut _for _him by a rather overzealous Mongol swordsman), and that became his new appearance for several years. One day, he caught himself thinking what Fitz would say if he saw him in that getup. Likely, he'd have laughed and embraced him as a long-lost brother. Sam would have approved, surely, though she never wore anything besides jeans and t-shirts, herself, if she could help it. Soon after, he got bored with the outfit and changed back to his more familiar ensemble.

Eventually, he paid a visit to the Natural History Museum to see if anything new or old had turned up. He was shocked to find a clutch of Tenkrul eggs in an exhibit on ancient Egypt, having been mistaken for beetle shells from some long extinct species. While they were dormant, and could remain so for hundreds of years, it could only be a short time before the parasites within hatched and begun to spread and multiply. Some clever sleight of hand and jiggery pokery let him switch out the eggs on display with the very beetle carapaces the scientists had taken them for, but there was always a possibility that others from the same source could have been taken for a private collection elsewhere. It had taken some work, but he tracked down the original discoverer of the eggs: a young archeology grad student who had just returned home to visit his family, no doubt with some harmless souvenirs.

Tenkrul parasites, because of their means of reproduction, tended to infest humanoids of a certain physical maturity; in the case of humans, teenagers, whose hormones and not-fully-developed thought processes made them ideal targets for infestation. He had decided to sweep through the local high school, attended by the student's younger brother, to perform damage control if necessary before trying to seek out the horde itself.

It was there, posing as a high school physics teacher and loving every second, that he first met Cassie.

Her friend, Kendra, was in his class during final period. Far more clever than she gave herself credit for, she actually managed to follow along for a while with a lesson meant to overwhelm his students while stoking their curiosity. Perhaps someday a few such students would remember his lesson and decide to pursue science as a career. After the class was over, Kendra was met by Cassie while the Doctor gathered his things; he talked to them both while walking to the main entrance. They were pleasant enough, intelligent and polite, a factor that's often lacking in girls their age. But after stepping outside, a stray breeze brushed across Cassie and toward the Doctor, who recognized the subtle fragrance instantly: the spicy, cloying scent of Tenkrul pheromones. Cassie had gotten a full dose and yet, astonishingly, was still in control of herself. Many other girls would have thrown themselves at the Tenkrul's host within minutes, regardless of circumstance or propriety, but aside from slightly flushed skin and unusual perspiration in the chill autumn air, she seemed fine. Resisting those chemically induced urges, along with the telepathic suggestions that came with them, was a remarkable act of will that the Doctor wouldn't have thought most humans capable of.

There was very little he could have done for her there. A pheromone counter-solution was incredibly complex, and though he had begun making it just in case, it would be several hours before it was complete. And this was on top of completing his survey of the school to ensure no others were affected. Signs were promising, though. With only one girl affected so far, chances were that the Tenkrul presence was limited. So he did what he could, leaving a trigger suggestion in her subconscious; it was too much to ask for a simple human to fully resist a Tenkrul's compulsion for long, but with luck and his help, she would be aware enough to resist until he could arrive with the antidote. Another device, a weapon calibrated to burn away infesting lifeforms, he brought along just in case.

It had gone as well as he could have hoped. Completing the solution, he had tracked Cassie to her house, and from there to the house of the grad student who had brought the eggs home with him. Near as the Doctor could tell, only he and his younger brother had been infested; another half dozen eggs were still in dormancy and were put into stasis before reviving. The grad student was safely subdued without attracting undue notice and the Tenkrul within extracted. Cassie was already gone, along with the student's brother, but another girl was there. Almost completely undressed, confused, and terrified, she knew that something had been done to her but had no idea what. But he knew all too well. He had draped his jacket across her shoulders and let her cry against him for as long as he dared before entering her mind. Erasing memories was generally much easier when they were recent, and so the process went smoothly. He implanted soothing currents of thought as he withdrew to ease the trauma, then injected a dose of the antidote; this close following the act, the antidote would serve to prevent the Tenkrul larva from taking hold inside her body. Quickly dressing her, he left her in the bedroom with the door open so that she'd be found by others in the house. When she came to, she would remember little other than that she'd fallen asleep in someone else's bed; embarrassing, but harmless. It was likely she'd recall flashes of what had happened in bad dreams or stray thoughts, but the Doctor hadn't the time to remove those lingering traces. As always, he'd done the best he could in the time he had, and now he had others to worry about.

The Doctor, still tracking the pheromone trail, tracked Cassie to her friend Kendra's home. A fairly well-to-do family, they had a sophisticated security system, undoubtedly something top of the line that the sonic screwdriver nonetheless disposed of easily. He tracked her to the bedroom, only to find the bed made and the room empty. Impossible! The trail terminated here. Unless...of course. They had heard him coming and decided to hide. Understandable, he supposed. Though making the bed was a stroke of genius, very quick thinking indeed.

He explained what was going on, filling in the blank spaces in the madness that had taken place over the last day. They both took the revelations in their stride, asking questions, wanting more information and wanting to help, clever and curious the both of them. Remarkable.

The standoff at Cassie's home was a closer affair than he's have liked. The parasite in the boy's body was already fully developed and had begun breaking down the host. Despite his best efforts, it only had thoughts for breeding and propagating its species and couldn't reason with him rationally. In the end, the Doctor had no choice but to destroy it.

Together, they saw Cassie's father to the hospital. Though she and Kendra showed up at the home despite his warnings, he couldn't fault them for worrying. He looked at them both, those clever and curious girls, his mind already wondering at the possibilities. No. He wouldn't let trauma and horror enter their lives and let that be what they remembered him for. They deserved better. He offered them what he'd offered so many others: a small glimpse of what lay beyond. And to his delight, they both accepted.

Cassie found the TARDIS behind the perception filter, yet another point in her favor. And from there followed a long afternoon on the Amethyst Sands, truly one of the most beautiful places in the universe. The Doctor even painted the scene, a hobby he hadn't indulged in close to a century.

When the time came, he told them that this was only the tiniest taste of what he could offer, and if they wished, he could take them with him to see so much more. Kendra demurred, not wanting to leave everything she knew behind; the Doctor understood. Making that choice was nothing to be ashamed of. Cassie, though, accepted. For so long, her home had been a chore, a heavy weight she labored under to keep some sense of normalcy in her life. And while she and her father had begun to make amends, home wasn't where she wanted to be right now. The Doctor understood that as well. Someday, when she was ready, she would come back, but for now, she simply wanted to be elsewhere.

And so, after so very long, he had a companion again.

He had been surprised by how easily he fell back into the role of wise and patient teacher. he had been afraid that he would come across as awkward, or even too forward. It had taken only a few minutes at the architectural configuration controls to bring up a suitable guest bedroom for Cassie and stock it with clothes, furniture, and whatever else she might need. In retrospect, he might have been too eager; though she hadn't complained, the Doctor could tell that she was somewhat uncomfortable with the luxury of her new quarters. Understandable, of course, given her upbringing. It would take some time to get used to.

After getting settled in, he decided to bring her to George's. Small, out of the way places fascinated him, and George's had been further out of the way than most the first time he'd visited. The recipes the man used were like nothing he's ever tasted before. Steaks, potatoes, vegetables, salads, and even the desserts were all colored by his touch. If he'd wanted, George could have been a world famous chef, with television shows, money, and all the other perks of fame. But his ambitions had never led him further than the intimate restaurant he owned and operated. Even upon reaching his twilight years, he could still be found in the kitchens, teaching his children and grandchildren the secrets and techniques he'd learned in his life; a contribution to the world, thought the Doctor, greater than that of many kings and rulers. When the man himself had passed on, the Doctor made a few discrete arrangements with the family's attorney. The restaurant itself flourished in its tiny corner of the city, but in case business ever faltered, the family would find a large, anonymous trust fund dedicated to keeping the restaurant in business and provide generously for its employees, as long as it continued to maintain it's patriarch's culinary traditions.

Though years tended to pass for the Doctor between visits, the benefits of being a time traveler made him a weekly visitor and a familiar face to the restaurant staff: An eccentric gentleman who paraded a never ending carousel of friends and young dates through their doors. His occupation was a subject of rumors and conjecture among the restaurant staff. He introduced himself as 'Doctor', so a private tutor or professor, maybe? Or someone who worked with troubled and/or gifted youths? That would certainly explain the company he kept. The Doctor had never volunteered the information and Dominic, the restaurant's longstanding host, was too polite to ask. This week he's brought with him a young girl in her mid teens, partially descended from the Japanese Imperium, judging from her eyes and build. It was the first time in a long while that Dominic had seen the man smiling, though, noticing his usual energetic self compared to the quiet, almost taciturn, persona he had during his last several visits, when he'd come alone.

As he told Cassie, he liked to bring his friends to George's because it made for a good starting point for their travels. The people were still human, the planet still Earth, but it helped to get them used to the idea of the enormity of time and space, and the restaurant, designed in a style that could have been as popular four hundred years ago as it was today, gave them something familiar.

What wasn't familiar was the appearance of another Time Lord, especially one like Romana. Goodness, he must have been distracted if he hadn't seen her first thing walking in the door! She was dressed in proper Earth clothing. And she had come to him when, as Lord President, she certainly had the means to drag the TARDIS back to Gallifrey if she'd wanted to talk to him in person. That meant something.

"So how are things back home?" the Doctor asked.

Romana flashed him a knowing grin, showing him that she knew that he knew full well the answer. "Much the same as ever. The rebuilding has been complete for some time. I daresay we've even improved on some of what was lost."

"I'm glad to hear it. Council politics are the same as ever, I suppose?"

"Yes," Romana confessed. It was one of the trying points of her reign as President. "Every time something happens, every time the cleanup is done, they make it a point to put things back the way they were before, not even taking any steps to keep it from happening again."

"I see," the Doctor replied. He had the good sense not to look smug in the face of being proven right.

"And what about you?" Romana asked, quick to change the subject before the I-told-you-so. "Traveling with a new companion, I see?"

"Yes." The Doctor's face brightened. "Cassie's only been with me for a couple days. She ran afoul of a bonded Tenkrul host on Earth while I was clearing out a forgotten hatchery."

"Tenkrul? On Earth?" Romana turned toward Cassie, suspecting the worst. "Oh, I'm so sorry."

"It's all right," Cassie assured her. "The Doctor helped me. Before anything, umm, too bad happened."

Romana let out a sigh of relief, putting a hand on Cassie's arm. "I'm glad to hear it. I know how close the Doctor likes to cut these things sometimes. I just wish he'd do it when it was only his own head on the line and not someone else's," she said, looking at the Doctor reproachfully. "How did Tenkrul eggs end up on Earth, anyway?"

"It was an old brood that had been on Earth for centuries," the Doctor explained, pointedly ignoring Romana's accusing look. "They'd been buried in the Egyptians sands. Apparently the heat and lack of moisture had kept them in stasis far longer than normal until some explorers found them and brought them back to normal climes."

"I'm very glad to hear it," said Romana. Long moments of silence followed, polite threatening to cross into awkward. "Why don't you ask me what you really want to ask, Doctor?"

The Doctor was still for a moment before replying. "How are they?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"Wonderful," Romana told him. "The Academy has already been sending inquiries."

The Doctor's face broke into a wide smile. "Really? This early?"

Romana nodded. "It would be quite the achievement."

Dominic returned to the table pushing a large cart laden with dishes. Seeing that Romana had joined them, he set a chicken salad in front of her. Romana took a small bite, eying the Doctor's enormous steak with mild disapproval as he rubbed his hands together in glee. After setting a bowl of bread rolls on the table and seeing to everyone's glasses, Dominic excused himself.

The meal lasted for some time. Romana asked Cassie to tell her about herself. Cassie, embarrassed, said that she doubted it would be at all interesting. Romana insisted, and Cassie slowly found herself telling her about her life back home, her school, and her close friends. Far from thinking her stories dull and mundane, Romana and the Doctor both seemed to hang on every word, taking turns asking her about her dreams for the future (working toward something in medicine, but not 100% sure just yet), her love life (none yet, the 'yet' sending the Time Lords into a round of good-natured teasing), and her family (a father and brother, and a mother who died several years ago). In return, Romana told her a few stories about how she first met the Doctor: Having been literally forced upon each other by a cosmic being, they were forced to seek out the pieces of a powerful artifact and reassemble it, all the while barely able to tolerate each other's company. Though they gradually warmed up to one another, it wasn't until Romana's second life that they truly bonded as friends, traveling together for over a century before she left him to lead a tribe of time-sensitive aliens out of a temporal dead zone in a parallel universe. After several years, her task complete, she managed to return to Gallifrey, the Time Lord's home world, where her exploits and experience caught the eye of the High Council, leading her to become the youngest Lord President in history ("Not that I'm bragging or anything", she insisted, glaring at the Doctor to head off any objection).

The meal was delicious, just as the Doctor said it would be. Cassie didn't see how the steak could be the best in the universe, but it was certainly the best she'd ever had. She must have been hungrier than she thought, as she was amazed that she'd been able to finish the whole thing. Not as amazed, though, as she was at the Doctor, who had devoured the massive steak, all of the sides, a handful of bread rolls, three or four glasses of wine, and was now sopping up the juice from his plate with another roll while glancing at the dessert menu. Romana had finished her meal long before the others, nibbling at a bread roll as Dominic arrived to take the dishes away. After asking Cassie what she would like for dessert and receiving a groan in reply, the Doctor politely set aside the menu as Romana asked only for a small sorbet.

"I have to confess, Doctor," Romana said as she twirled the frozen treat with a spoon. "That I didn't come here just for a social visit."

"Somehow I didn't think so," he replied, sipping at his wine glass.

"There's...been a problem. One that the Council thinks you're best equipped to solve."

"Really. I should like to hear them say that aloud."

Romana gave him an annoyed look before continuing. "I'm not sure if you know this, but several of the recent Academy graduates over the past few centuries have taken to looking at you as something of a role model. They've taken their TARDISs on unauthorized jaunts, interacted with local civilizations in ways not normally allowed."

"You don't mean trying to alter history?" the Doctor asked. "TARDISs correct for paradox, the newer models more than most, and especially for recent graduates. Any influence they try to have should be self-correcting."

"True, there haven't been any major incidents, but not for lack of trying. We've managed to corral most of the renegades before any harm was done. One even modified his TARDIS's reality quotient and tried to save a planetary civilization from a supernova."

The Doctor grimaced. The reality quotient was a measurement of how much a TARDIS's inhabitants could affect the timeline. Normally set low in order to prevent unforeseen changes spanning beyond primary actions, it could nonetheless be modified upwards with enough effort and know-how, letting the user radically alter history in a cascading wave of cause and effect. Trying to save an entire species would have been a gross alteration of the timeline, forbidden by rules even the Doctor rarely crossed. On top of that, a supernova, like most celestial events, was a fixed point, destined to happen and unalterable; the consequences for violating the events stemming from a fixed point could be dire.

"What happened to him?" the Doctor asked.

"Stripped of his TARDIS until the High Council believes he can be trusted with it, remedial courses in temporal ethics for at least a century, and forced regeneration," Romana recited without hesitation.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. Harsh penalties, indeed. "Sounds familiar," he replied.

A thought struck him. "Now, you said you found 'most' of the graduates."

Romana nodded. "Yes, and that brings up the main problem. One Time Lord, Damon, took his TARDIS out exploring. We sent out others to retrieve him but they didn't find any trace of him or his TARDIS. His trail came to a dead end."

The Doctor thought for a moment. "As much as I'd hate to say it, but have you considered that he and the TARDIS might have been destroyed? It's not impossible that he might have rematerialized in the path of a quantum ribbon or something else." Even as he said it, though, the Doctor didn't quite believe it himself. TARDISs ignored petty things like gravity and most laws of physics; materializing in the wake of a supernova or black hole would barely have done more than scuff the finish.

"We know that he's still alive, along with the TARDIS," Romana continued. "Their presence is still confirmed in the Spiral Politic."

That set the Doctor back on his heels. The Spiral Politic was nothing less than the measurement of everything in existence as it related to everything else, the orderly metronome of reality. Part device, metaphysical construct, means of perception, and magic, all in ways that could never be understood by, or properly explained to, non-Time Lords. Those versed in its use could find any individual person, event, or location, and derive its effects upon anything else in the universe, and the effects those 'anything elses' had upon everything else, and vice versa, finding the cause of a given event or fact. Nonetheless, viewing it was a strenuous exercise, even for experienced Time Lords. It required tremendous concentration to filter through the infinite possibilities it generated to find useful information. If Romana found it necessary to consult the Spiral Politic as to Damon's remaining effect on the timeline, she must have considered the situation quite serious.

"So you want me to track this Damon down for you?" the Doctor hazarded.

"That's right," Romana nodded, reaching inside her jacket and pulling out a parchment scroll tied with ribbon. "We have his last known coordinates here, but the investigation teams we sent didn't find anything from there. But if anyone can make sense of this and find him, I know it's you."

The Doctor took the scroll and stood to his feet, leaving the proper payment on the table. "You seem so certain that I'll do as you ask," he remarked as the three of them exited the restaurant. Night had long since fallen, and they began making their way back toward the boardwalk and the Doctor's own craft.

"I am," Romana said. "Because I know you. And I know that you could never resist a mystery. Well, you have one here that's stumped the best minds on Gallifrey."

"The best minds on Gallifrey haven't had an original thought since the Third War in Heaven," the Doctor observed.

"You know better than that," Romana told him as they emerged onto the boardwalk. The landing was empty save for a few lingering stragglers braving the cold wind sweeping in from the lake. They stopped in front of the TARDIS, the Doctor unlocking the door and holding it open for Romana, who peeked inside. "I don't think I'll ever understand how you managed to change the architectural settings that much beyond the standard," she said, taking in the massive shelves of books and old-fashioned decorations.

"You should ask the best minds on Gallifrey," he suggested. "They might be able to give you answer someday."

"I suppose I should get going," Romana said. "I have my own less impressively outfitted TARDIS waiting to take me back."

"You needn't worry," the Doctor assured her, holding up the scroll. "If there's any way to track down this rogue Time Lord of yours, I promise I'll find it."

"Thank you, Doctor." They embraced warmly for a long while before she stretched up and kissed him softly. "You really should visit more often, you know."

"Perhaps you're right," he said, finally releasing her as she stepped away. "It would be nice to see them again."

"They do ask about you, but they understand that you have your own role to play. I'll send them your love." She turned toward Cassie, hugging her close. "I'm very glad to have met you, Cassie. Take care of the Doctor for me, will you?"

"I will. It was nice meeting you, too," she told her.

Romana stepped back, a sad smile on her face. "I'm sorry that such a pleasant evening had to come about because of business, but sometimes that's how it is. And don't worry about not understanding much of what we talk about sometimes. You'll get used to it, and if there's one thing I've learned from the Doctor, it's that knowledge and facts rarely matter as much as you think."

"I'll remember that," Cassie promised her. Aside from telling her about her family and high school life, Cassie had stayed quiet while the Doctor and Romana talked about things far over her head. Several times she had wanted to interrupt with a question, but didn't want to seem rude. It felt a lot like being a little girl again, with parents and teachers talking about things she didn't understand as though she weren't even there. At least Romana understood and empathized with what that felt like. From the stories she'd told about her time with the Doctor, it's likely she'd felt the same way herself once.

With that, Romana turned and headed up the boardwalk at a leisurely stroll. She was certainly in no hurry to get back, the Doctor noticed. Maybe there were still things here she wanted to visit while she could. With her responsibilities, chances to get away for awhile, even on official business, were beyond rare.

The Doctor ushered Cassie on board, then unfurled the scroll Romana had given him, revealing a series of lines and diagrams, laced with notations written in Old High Gallifreyian. Each hieroglyphic character, placed just so in relation to the others around it, was the equivalent of paragraphs of text in another language. Among many other things, it was the only written form that could convey temporal coordinates without being vague, inaccurate, or misunderstood, and as the Doctor read further, the image of a point in time and space began to grow in his mind.

"This Damon must have good taste," he said, rolling up the scroll and heading for the control console.

"Why do you say that?" Cassie asked. The Doctor had let her look over his elbow at the scroll, but even with the TARDIS translation circuits at work in her mind (the Doctor would have to explain how that worked), all she could see were scribbled formations and strange characters. Old High Gallifreyian, by its very nature, could not be translated into any other form without losing a vast majority of its meaning. A handful of characters, meant to give greetings to one whom you have loved through lifetimes, each syllable conveying the social status and age of both the speaker and the one being spoken to, the implication that neither's status matters, and the conclusion that this love would last through the end of this universe and the birth of the next. Each line of the character having a proper and precise meaning, derived from itself, the character it is part of, the characters surrounding it, and even the force with which it was written, all had great significance. This message, unable to be perfectly translated without months of work from a lesser society's greatest scholars, could mistakenly be considered the equivalent to something as mundane as "Hello, sweetie!", losing all but the tiniest sliver of meaning in the process.

"Because," the Doctor replied, dialing at the controls. "Our new friend decided to visit one of the most scientifically advanced civilizations in history. Our next stop is the Era of the Star's Wisdom!" he concluded, throwing back a lever and sending the TARDIS into motion.


End file.
